TPi June 2014 - Issue 178

TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL

TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL

WWW.TPiMAGAZINE.COM JUNE 2014

ISSUE 178

LIVE EVENT DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY • JUNE 2014 • ISSUE 178

PRISM VISION BABY, YOU’RE A FIREWORK....

KATY PERRY’S PRISMATIC WORLD TOUR

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: TOTAL SOLUTIONS • THE EUROVISION SONG CONTEST • THE 1975 • LOUDSPEAKER MARKET FOCUS • ELBOW • IN PROFILE: CHAIN MASTER • COACHELLA’S SPECIAL EFFECTS • CATCH 22

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PUBLISTING Total Production International June 2014 Issue Creative: LYON Live Unit:

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HELLO FROM THE WHITE ISLAND I think this issue has been one of the busiest months I’ve experienced at TPi. While we’ve been up against it, travelling and meeting an abundance of production managers and technicians from around the world, sourcing the latest global content and experiencing the newest technologies on offer, we’ve also put together another jam-packed issue for all your tour reading necessities… possibly in record time!

I’m writing this on the journey home from the white island they call Ibiza (we would have taken a better photo but alas, Ibiza doesn’t pour its spirit measures quite like England!) We attended the IMS - International Music Summit - conference and experienced - for the very first time - the island’s iconic opening parties. This really is a new world to me, and I’m embracing it! Thanks to Pioneer DJ and Pioneer Professional Audio, XL Video and the IMS crew, we’ve had the best introduction into the realm of pro DJs and EDM events. Watch out for some opening party coverage and a report on the incredible setting of the Dalt Vila gigs in an upcoming issue. The Shop Ibiza’s Simeon Friend will tell you all about production life in Ibiza in this month’s Vital Stats.

Back in Blighty, we’ve been hammering away on our keyboards to deliver news on all aspects of production. From pyrotechnics at Coachella Festival to theatre logistics in the UK, to the lighting design on British electronic act Metronomy’s latest outing in Paris, and the mighty feat that is Eurovision, Patrick and I have certainly been adding to this never-ending education.

Full production profiles come in the form of Elbow and The 1975’s live shows, and Lionel Richie conquers Dubai with his ‘80s classics. Katy Perry is clearly this month’s cover girl, and what a cover story it is! Big thanks to her production “Check out Katy Perry’s team for hosting us during the very busy early costume selection on stages of this spectacular tour. We’re the first Pg.34, alongside some magazine to cover this production in full, so I awe-inspiring technical hope you enjoy the read. I have to say, if I was a pop star, I’d have a feline alter ego too. Check out software integration...” her costume selection on Pg.34, alongside some awe-inspiring technical software integration.

But it’s not all about the big players.

Interestingly, our June issue has taken on a youthful tone post IPM discussions on new talent needing a gateway into the industry; we have stories on the National Student Drama Festival, a report on CATO Academy’s launch, and the PSA features the Entertainment Workshops charity.

We’ve also got a huge Market Focus in store; eight pages of the latest loudspeaker innovations. For anyone reading this issue at Glastonbury, you may have heard that Martin Audio’s MLA PA system is making its debut appearance on the festival’s Pyramid Stage. If you’re involved with the gigantic event, be sure to let me know what you’re working on at Eavis’ gaff. The TPi crew will be there for the duration... so I hope you’re as excited for the start of this summer’s live events as we are.

Kelly Murray Editor

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Editor Kelly Murray Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7738 154689 e-mail: k.murray@mondiale.co.uk Assistant Editor Patrick McCumiskey Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7929 249169 e-mail: p.mccumiskey@mondiale.co.uk International Advertising & Sponsorship Hannah Eakins Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7760 485230 e-mail: h.eakins@mondiale.co.uk Advertising Sales Kieren Gardens Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7733 113284 e-mail: k.gardens@mondiale.co.uk TPi Awards Event Manager Amy Wright Tel: +44 (0)161 476 5580 e-mail: a.wright@mondiale.co.uk Graphic Design & Production Dan Seaton: d.seaton@mondiale.co.uk Mel Robinson: m.robinson@mondiale.co.uk General Manager Justin Gawne Mondiale Group Chairman Damian Walsh Contributors Simon Duff & Sarah Rushton-Read Intern Stevie Pickering www.tpimagazine.com • www.tpiawards.com Cover Photography: Katy Perry by Sarah Rushton-Read Printed by Buxton Press Annual subscriptions (including P&P): £42 (UK), £60 (Europe), £78 / $125 (RoW).

Subscription enquiries to: Subscriptions, Mondiale Publishing Limited, Waterloo Place, Watson Square, Stockport SK1 3AZ, UK; Tel: +44 (0)161 476 5580; Fax: +44 (0)161 476 0456; e-mail: subscriptions@mondiale.co.uk Issue 178 / June 2014 TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL is a controlled circulation magazine, published 12 times a year by Mondiale Publishing Limited under licence. ISSN 1461-3786 Copyright © 2014 Mondiale Publishing Limited. All contents of this publication are subject to worldwide copyright protection and reproduction in whole or part, in any form whatsoever, is expressly forbidden without the prior written consent of the Publishers. Every effort is taken to ensure accuracy in the preparation of this publication but neither Mondiale Publishing Ltd, nor the Editor, can be held responsible for its contents or any consequential loss or damage resulting from information published. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the Publishers or Editor. The Publishers accept no responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, illustrations, advertising materials or artwork.

EVENT FOCUS 06 Eurovision Song Contest

Patrick McCumiskey takes a walk backstage with

Barco Projectors.

10 National Student Drama Festival

The second NSDF gives the opportunity

for students to join the technical team.

14 Catch 22

Wicked Technical Services and Northern Stage

bring Joseph Heller’s play to life.

16 Gary Barlow

The Take That frontman soaks up the spotlight.

20 Adlib Turns 30

The Liverpool-based rental company celebrates a landmark.

22 The Coachella Effect

Quantum Corp. and ER Productions on desert SFX.

26 Metronomy

The band’s GLS Lighting and Ed Warren combo.

30 The CATO Academy Launch

Glen Rowe tells all...

32 Brit Floyd

Elation Professional brings the cover band to centre stage.

PRODUCTION PROFILE 34 Katy Perry

Kelly Murray goes backstage for Katy Perry’s

Prismatic tour in all its ‘Catoure’ beauty.

PROFILE

52 Elbow

Simon Duff on Cate Carter’s production design.

58 The 1975

The young Brits take over the Albert Hall.

64 Lionel Richie

Dubai Media City sees the icon’s Middle East gig.

CLOCKING OFF 68 Roland Systems Groups’ Peter Heath writes about

his charity fund-raising hobbies.

COMPANY PROFILE 70 ChainMaster’s 20th Anniversary.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT 74 Total Solutions’ OV Truss takes the hot seat.

MARKET FOCUS 76 Loudspeakers

We deliver the latest in Loudspeaker innovations.

PSA 86 The Entertainment Workshops charity.

MOVERS & SHAKERS 88 The latest industry appointments.

VITAL STATS 94 The Shop Ibiza’s Simeon Friend talks, erm, shop.

05

EVENT FOCUS: Eurovision 2014

EUROVISION SONG CONTEST 2014’S EUROVISION SONG CONTEST FINAL WAS HELD IN THE SPECTACULAR B&W HALLERNE IN COPENHAGEN, DENMARK - A FORMER SHIP’S WHARF TRANSFORMED INTO A CUSTOM-MADE ARENA. TPi’S PATRICK MCCUMISKEY WENT BACKSTAGE WITH BARCO PROJECTORS TO OBSERVE THE VISUAL TECHNOLOGICAL WONDER THAT IS THE EUROVISION SONG CONTEST. This year, approximately 180 million viewers in 45 countries tuned in to the finals held on 10 May. With such high viewing numbers year on year, the pressure is most certainly on the host country to deliver a show that is memorable. Thanks in no small part to Austria’s polarising cross-dressing winner, Conchita Wurst, and the impressive scale of the production that accompanied the 37 finalists songs, Copenhagen 2014 has certainly created an impact.

Work began converting the B&W Hallerne - a former ship building warehouse venue on the Refshaleøen island - into an 11,000 seater venue on the 19th May 2013, just one day after Denmark were crowned champions of the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö, Sweden such is the scale of the task that the organisers set themselves.

“Its pretty obvious to see what challenges we had when you look around the venue.

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Because it’s not a venue, it’s just an empty room,” conceded Director, Per Zachariassen.

“When we started it was just a cold room with a lot of steel, so we had to do everything from the ground up. The advantage is that we have a lot of height, normally we have around 20 or 30-metres, but in this case we have around 60-metres.

“I’m always looking forward to see what the organisers create each year. I feel responsible for coming up with something new, so I’ve tried to push the team to come up with something new this year.”

Fortunately for Set Designer, Claus Zier, he didn’t have to search for too long for inspiration: “The venue is an old shipyard where hundreds of ships were built. I wanted to build something where the audience could feel the DNA of the place. I saw a picture of the shipyard and I thought it would be a good idea to recreate a ship”. He continued: “Shipping has been an

important part of Danish history, so it was very natural to have this ship-like feeling, and also to have water on the stage.”

THE STAGE VISUALS The stage - which comprised a steel cube structure with 120 individual modules - was an impressive sight to behold. “The cube structure on the stage emulates the way ships are built - steel structure underneath and (in this case) acrylic to dress it,” said Zier. The acrylic surface which adorned the 20-metre high by 40-metre wide steel cube was topped with an opaque ‘magic’ polycarbonate film which, when charged by an electric current, became transparent - the first time such technology has been used in a live production event.

When opaque, the surface allowed for the projection of animated graphics and pictures, a feature that was utilised to maximum effect throughout the 37 performances in the final.

EVENT FOCUS: Eurovision 2014

Opposite: The 60-metre high arena in a former shipyard building complex was the ideal venue to house the impressive Eurovision production, involving some 3,000 lights and a 1,200sq-metre LED backwall.

Following on from its involvement last year (supplying 60 projectors to the Eurovision contest in Malmö, Sweden), 16 Barco HDQ2K40’s were used to project graphic content from a distance and 16 Barco HDX-W Flex’s were utilised to project graphic content from close-up, actually hidden beneath the stage and angled onto the cubes. An additional eight Barco SLM-R12+ Performer projectors were used to display the live television feeds for the 11,000- strong audience around the arena.

Richard Marples, Strategic Marketing Director of Venues and Attractions at Barco, commented: “This year again, every projection the TV spectators will see on their screen will be powered by Barco. We can’t think of a better way to showcase our innovative projection solutions.”

Barco Project Manager, Lotta Schiefer, added: “In shows like Eurovision, the projectors are running non-stop for weeks on end in extreme conditions. The HDQ and HDXs are designed for touring and have the right robustness to perform in high ambient temperatures with heavy use of pyrotechnics, confetti and smoke. Even the SLM R12+ projectors are up to the test almost 10 years after being released.”

Supplying the array of Barco projectors and infrastructure - including tecViz Fibre optic signal distribution to all LED screens and projectors, and fully redundant fibre network for media servers to the event - were long-term Eurovision collaborators and official supplier of the ESC 2014, AV rental house Mediatec Solutions Sweden.

Project Manager at Mediatec, Niclas Ljung has worked on Eurovision a total of seven times, having first been involved with the show back in 2000 when Stockholm were the hosts. Said Ljung: “The HDQ-2K40 projectors are so bright and powerful that they can project high-resolution images from the most extreme angles.” He continued: “The HDX-W20 projectors are equipped with class-leading on-board image processing for extreme scaling. They are, therefore, perfectly up to the

challenge of projecting onto the cube from a very short distance.”

Also supplied by Mediatec were nine d3 Technologies 4U v2.5 media servers used to feed all the Barco projectors and LED screens with content - a new addition to 2014’s production. Combining a real-time 3D stage visualiser, timeline, video playback engine and projection mapping tools in one product, the d3 servers provided a useful tool for the content design houses creating the shows visual design.

“The d3 4U didn’t miss a beat,” said Ljung. “The d3 media server proved itself time after time on a huge and complex production.”

When working in a 3D real-time environment, all outputs can be prepared on the d3 machines well ahead of the onsite installation. For example, Bajt and Harman’s Martin Professional lead video technician, Jens Pedersen prepared the d3 output and preconfigured the Martin Professional P3 Power Port processors a few weeks before going onsite, of which there were 45 P3’s and six P3 200’s. Said Pedersen: “When on-site, we just plugged in the d3 output into the Martin Professional processors, and everything was mapped up perfectly. A huge amount of time was saved preparing the show virtually in an office environment and then just doing small tweaks on-site.”

David Bajt, external Video Consultant and d3 specialist, was on hand to talk about the key role played by the d3 Technologies servers in executing the show: “We’re using 9 d3 machines in total. During the show, there are three roles the machines perform. The first role is that of master; the second role is slave - machines which take commands from the master; and the third role is that of understudy, which listens to what the master and slaves are doing and can take over the role of a slave in the case of a slave going down. It is of top priority here on Eurovision to have back up servers in case something goes wrong. On any other show we would be using half as many servers.”

Bajt was keen to affirm a long-standing

relationship between d3 Technologies and Barco projectors. “We’ve been partners for quite a long time. In fact, the very first gig we did together was U2’s vertigo tour in 2004, which was when d3 was born. We’re quite at home with Barco projectors, they perform flawlessly.”

The d3 Technologies servers also supplied content to the unmissable 1200sq-metre LED backwall. The huge LED wall was made up of Kindwin Spider 30 units, and supplied by Mediatec. Lighting Designer Kasper Lange has worked for the production company involved with this years’ Eurovision production, DR (Danish Broadcasting Corporation), for several years, in addition to X-Factor, Denmarks Got Talent and Danish Eurovision. The humongous LED wall was an intrinsic aspect of the audiences experience, according to Lange: “I knew early in this process that I would make the shows visible expression powerful - there are 27 songs in the final, and my philosophy has been that there was enough noise in all the songs for the viewer to remember - and because of that, I wanted to ensure that the show was visually easy to consume.”

The interplay between the huge LED back wall and the cube structure was further highlighted by Tom Colbourne, Production Content Designer from BlinkTV, one of the content houses involved with the design of the show: “In some performances we began in the smaller more intimate space with the cubes used as a projection surface, and the giant upstage LED wall remained off, then we would ‘go big’ later in the song by turning the cubes transparent to reveal content on the LED wall.”

Adorning the steel cube structure were a series of Martin Professional VC-Strip LED Video lights which fulfilled several purposes, including illuminating the core framework of the cube and also working together to form part of the projected video content. Martin Professional was involved with the creation of the stage design from the very beginning.

“We’re very proud of the fact that Martin’s LED video VC-strips were chosen specifically by Set Designer Claus Zier to form such an essential

07

EVENT FOCUS: Eurovision 2014

Below: The LED back wall and the steel cube strucure were combined in the show design creating impressive visual results; a screenshot from the d3 Technologies created simulation of the Eurovision stage design. d3 Technologies software allows the visual aspect of an entire show to be planned out in its entirety; an assortment of Barco projectors delivered video content to the cube.

part of the stage design along with lots of other Martin products,” commented Lars Dige Knudsen, Martin Professional’s Vice President and General Manager. He continued: “In general, Eurovision is extremely important to us. We’re so pleased with the designers’ abilities to showcase our products in such an extraordinary design.”

Another first for Eurovision was the tecViz BS10 interactive floor. Mediatec supplied 179m2 of the 1.7 million-pixel floor, also commanded by the d3 media servers. Said Bajt: “The floor reads pressure data from the surface and sends it to d3, and then we are able to generate 3d effects to match the position of people on stage.”

“We were working on four very different media surfaces with each their own technical and creative strengths and challenges,” conceded Nicoline Refsing, Creative Director and Content Producer.

“In addition, the 40 second turn around time between the performances was a challenge in itself but with the good stage manager on board (Jesper Philbert) we still managed to squeeze a few sets in there, which I think added more dynamic to the show.

“I chose to work with three different media houses on this job: BlinkTV, Gravity and Hello Charlie, which turned out to be a very successful collaboration.”

LIGHTING PRG and Danish supplier LiteCom teamed up to supply the impressive lighting rig for the show. Both PRG and LiteCom had already worked with Eurovision’s Light 08

Designer, Kasper Lange, on several occasions. “And once again, it has proved a great collaboration,” confirmed LiteCom account manager, Balder Thorrud. Tom Van Hemelryck, Vice President of Global Special Events at PRG, added: “PRG and Litecom from Denmark agreed on a collaboration for this years show. We believe working with a local partner is often the best approach. Eurovision is a very important event for PRG. Our first collaboration was actually 10 years ago in Turkey and we have supplied the event in different countries with different AV technologies several times since then.”

PRG Germany contributed 144 PRG Badboys, over 250 GLP impression X4’s, 178 Clay Paky Sharpy Wash 330’s, 32 Clay Paky Alpha Beam 1500’s, 290 Sunstrip Active DMX’s, 30 Philips Vari-Lite VL3500 Spot, 24 Philips Vari-Lite VL3500 Washes and 212 Philips Vari-Lite VL5’s. LiteCom supplied 210 Martin Professional MAC Viper Profiles, 185 Rush MH3’s, 199 Atomic 3000 DMX Strobes with color scroller, 56 MAC 2000 Wash XB’s, 40 Mac Quantum Wash’s, 5,500 VC LED Video Strips and 350 SGM Six Packs. Six Robert Juliat Cyrano and four Robert Juliat Aramus were employed as follow spots.

Although the show was equipped with well over 1000 moving heads, and 1,500 spots, Lighting Designer Lange was keen to stress the fine line between quality and quantity in terms of lighting production: “The intention is not to use all of the light all of the time. The challenge is to make sure that each country has what they wish for.” He continued: “The

task is not to add any more lights than the song needs, so that each artist shines.”

Lange’s lighting rig contained a plethora of different lights covering the whole lighting spectrum. He continued: “Each light has been chosen for its specific features and character, so each one has been designed to perform a specific function within the show.”

Lange also utilised seven MA Lighting grandMA2 full-size and two grandMA2 Light consoles, complete with 19 MA NPU processing units and nine MA 8Port nodes for control. Lange stated: “On a system of this size there is really only one control choice today - the grandMA2.”

With regard to the huge number of SGM Six Packs employed, founder of Martin Professional and current CEO of SGM, Peter Johansen stated: “I am delighted that SGM fixtures were included in the incredible show.”

In terms of the visual production of the show, Copenhagen 2014 has set the bar extremely high for

next years Eurovision in Austria.

Despite the complicity of the show, thanks to the professionalism of the 450-strong production crew, the show looked and ran effortlessly. Bajt concluded: “Believe it or not, the show itself isn’t so complicated. The challenge with this show is the huge amount of content and the sheer amount of people, the communication and production is the main thing.”

TPi Photos: Jakob Boserup Screenshot: David Bajt www.barco.com www.d3technologies.com www.mediatecgroup.com www.martin.com www.blinktv.com www.prg.com www.litecom.dk www.germanlightproducts.com www.claypaky.it shop.showtec.co.uk www.vari-lite.com sgmlight.com www.robertjuliat.com www.malighting.com http://rockartdesign.com

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EVENT FOCUS: National Student Drama Festival

PUTTING STUDENTS CENTRE STAGE The importance of nurturing new production talent is a recurring topic at many industry conferences and events, and was one of the most debated at this year’s ILMC International Production Meeting (IPM). The consensus is clear: education and theory is all well and good, but what the industry needs is graduates with real-life, hands-on experience. But it’s up to the industry to provide the training ground. TPi caught up with the National Student Drama Festival (NSDF) which does just that.

This year’s IPM tackled the subject with its “Back to the Future: Education” debate. Session chairman Bryan Grant from Britannia Row commented: “Students come out of college with a sound engineering qualification, not having been taught anything about the live side of the business. Then you have to tell them the sad truth that they might have to load a truck or push boxes, when they thought they’d just be there to mix the Rolling Stones.”

That’s not the case at the NSDF, where the aim from the start is to give an accurate representation of what the world of production is really like. The NSDF’s roots go back 60 years to 1956 and each year the event showcases the best productions written, directed and performed by young people aged 16-25. This year it attracted over 90 submissions, whittled down to 11 productions and a total of 52 10

performances through the week 12-18 April, in venues across the seaside resort of Scarborough.

But, the NSDF is not just about the impressive talent which happens on stage. Since the beginning it has encouraged young people to get involved with the backstage process. This year it welcomed 60 eager applicants, who got their hands dirty with everything from rigging and staging, lighting and sound and that ever important skill: how to unload a truck.

David Graham, Technical Director, tells us more: “This is my second year working with the NSDF, after it was flagged to me by a friend whilst I was working at the Edinburgh Fringe.

As soon as I read about the event and its aims I knew I wanted to be involved. It’s so important to give new people coming into the industry the opportunity to learn firsthand.

“Although the NSDF is about training, it’s still a real event with real deadlines and goals to work to. If the students don’t do what we need them to do, then the show can’t go on.

It’s a pressurised environment. Separate to the event build we also offer workshops from our sponsors so people get the chance to try out the latest equipment and learn from the best in the industry. It’s a very open environment and they can focus on the areas they’d like to know more about. Both years I’ve been here it’s been really overwhelming when you see the show coming together, and just how capable the students are

and how much progress they make in such a short space of time.”

SELECTION PROCESS The application process for the student crew is simple, yet oversubscribed, showcasing just how popular these sorts of opportunities are.

Via website ‘Ideas Tap’ students can apply from late September to early January, with the team painstakingly going through every application and ensuring an even mix of new and returning students. This year there were over 120 applications for the 60 spaces available.

Graham continued: “When choosing students the main thing that we’re looking for is how it will benefit them. We want people to get the most out of the experience. We have some students who are studying relevant university degrees, others who might be looking for a career change, or maybe even performers who want to learn more about how shows are put together. The youngest applicant this year was 16 years old, with the eldest at 25 with a fairly even split of male and female. It’s about inclusivity and we try to have a very diverse group. We also try to keep costs down as much as possible so it’s not prohibitive. This year it was £130 per applicant and that included food, accommodation, workshops, PPE, access to all the shows and access to tons of the latest industry equipment.”

EVENT FOCUS: National Student Festival

Opposite: The NSDF aims to give an accurate representation of what the world of live production is really like. Below: The NSDF is an unlikey industry training ground, as well as a hive for theatre lovers; NSDF’s Technical Director, David Graham.

order to build the venues and recreate each INDUSTRY BACKING show. Cue the festival’s very generous sponsors.

A core aim of the technical production team, “We couldn’t do it without them,” explained led by David Graham, and supported by 10 Graham. “And not just in terms of donating specialists in sound, lights and staging, is to equipment (although this runs into the hundreds recreate all 11 productions as closely as possible. of thousands of pounds). They also give up their It’s not an easy task with every show requiring time to work with students to build the venues, different sets, lights, PA and special effects and and also to run the workshops once the festival a modest budget in which to achieve it. Funding is open. It’s a lot to ask and the support from comes from festival tickets, the Arts Council and the industry is fantastic. charitable donations, although it is nowhere including Blackout, Stage 1 “Sponsors near enough 'People' to cover the half-page huge hire costs in Blackout LSI:Layout 11/2/14 14:56 Page 1

Electrics, EM Acoustics, Sennheiser, Avolites, Ambersphere, Stage Sound Services, Green Hippo, Association of Sound Designers, Le Maitre, Lee Filters, ETC and Zero88 all play a significant role that not only enables the technical team to offer high production standards for the theatre companies but also enhances the quality of experience for the students. They get to work with leading professionals and experience the latest equipment, which otherwise they might be

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EVENT FOCUS: National Student Drama Festival

Below: NSDF’s Head of Lighting, Ant Doran; Supporting the NSDF for the second year, drapes and rigging expert Blackout donated a 45ft artic truck full of equipment to the venue.

waiting until the early years of their careers to do. We want to extend a huge thank you to them for their ongoing support and for making the NSDF such a successful event.”

BLACKED OUT Supporting the NSDF for the second year, drapes and rigging expert Blackout donated a 45ft articulated truck full of equipment, along with full onsite project management from head rigger Nick Brown. He demonstrated to students the skills required to create safe, practical draping and rigging solutions across the festival venues.

The Clive Wolfe Auditorium at Scarborough Sports Centre has caused issues for the NSDF in the past with its high ceilings and skylights making it a difficult space to cost effectively covert to suit theatrical productions. This year, Blackout donated extra equipment and time to help solve the problem.

NSDF’s Graham said: “The extra equipment from Blackout has made a massive difference to the quality of the venues that we were able to create, especially the Clive Wolfe. It’s a sports centre and, in previous years, we’ve used bin bags taped over the sky lights to black out the space. Definitely not ideal! It looked unprofessional (they kept falling down) and didn’t offer a complete black out.

“Since Blackout have come on board we have been able to construct a black box, which is not only more suitable for the productions, but meant the student crew members were able to experience a full theatre build whilst working safely at ground level.”

Blackout’s Nick Brown explained: “For the Clive Wolfe Auditorium, we suggested creating the black box environment by using a 25-metre by 18-metre and six-metre high mother grid, with black wool serge sides and roof. This gave the lighting, sound and set design teams a much cleaner, more suitable environment for the chosen productions. For us it was a straight forward job but it made a huge difference to the quality of the festival and also gave the students the chance to create a theatre environment from scratch.

“They were involved in every step of the build and were extremely enthusiastic and 12

professional. The way I see it is that these students might well be our future colleagues, employees or maybe even clients. There’s not that much young blood coming into the industry anymore so it’s important that we create opportunities for those that are.

“They are all incredibly eager to learn, but I could tell straight away the ones who wanted to get up in the cherry picker and learn how to rig a point. Drapes and rigging specialists are often the unsung heroes of the production world: people often don’t see it as a full time career so it was great to be able to demonstrate the opportunities it presents.”

Along with Browns onsite support, in total Blackout supplied the production team with 25 hoist motors, 100 linear metres of pipe and drape, 500 lin. m of drapes, 100 lin. m of red velour and 350-metre run of truss.

MAKING PROGRESS There is no doubt that the NSDF is an invaluable experience for students. Not only does it look great on their CV but, as David Graham is keen to point out, it also gives you those allimportant industry contacts. In fact, many of the festival’s production team started as student applicants themselves, and cite the NSDF as one of the main reasons for their successful freelancer careers.

Ant Doran, the festival’s head of lighting, was back at the NSDF for the 6th year. He studied Lighting and Design at Rose Bruford graduating in 2013. “I’ve held a lot of different roles at the festival,” he explained.

“I started as general crew in 2009 and then worked as assistant quartermaster, then head quartermaster where I was in charge of logistics and ensuring equipment was in the right place.

In my fifth year I took on the role of head of lighting, as a paid member of the team.”

For Doran, the benefits are definitely tangible with solid work since graduating coming directly from contacts he met through the festival. Head of staging Mike Williams is another success story. He first applied during university in 2006, before graduating with a degree in Theatre Performance Technology in 2007 from LIPA. As head of staging his role now is looking after how venues operate and making sure they have

the physical equipment for build.

“I look after the physics of it. The rigging, staging, decking etc,” he commented. “I make sure the space actually works for the companies coming to perform and rebuilding the venue to match their requirements.”

This year has been one of his most challenging yet. “Each year completely different shows are chosen. This year there just happens to be a lot of musicals: four out of the 11. The nature of this means the lighting designs tend to be a lot more complex and Matt (Chisholm, Head of Sound) needed more radio microphones than ever before. This put a massive strain on the budget, so we have had to rely more heavily on our sponsors.

“Challenges aside, I love this job. All of the technical team do this at lower rates than our normal work but it’s worth it. We get to see the up-and-comers. This is a great opportunity for us to make contacts as much as it is for them, plus it’s a good laugh. It can be challenging to keep them motivated all of the time as there’s so much to do. But that’s when you spot the good ones!”

Chisholm agrees. He started in 2004 as general crew and hasn’t looked back since.

He now works across the industry including large scale corporate events, after studying Theatre Performance Technology at LIPA. He said: “I wouldn’t be here today without NSDF. It really gives you confidence and shows you how venues work, and how you can go from an empty hall to a full-scale theatre. I was amazed by how quickly you can turn something around.”

Martin Wood, managing director at Blackout, takes the final word: “We were very pleased to help the NSDF for another year, and be able to offer a greater level of support for such a good cause. It is vital for companies like us and other sponsors to support events such as this which provide hands-on practical experience to young people interested in learning more about the industry and thus help secure the next generation on and off-stage.”

TPi www.nsdf.org.uk www.blackout-ltd.com

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EVENT FOCUS: Catch 22

JOSEPH HELLER’S CATCH 22 NORTH EAST BASED WICKED ARE TAKING NORTHERN STAGE BACK ON THE ROAD WITH THE MUCH ANTICIPATED PRODUCTION OF CATCH-22. PATRICK MCCUMISKEY WENT BACKSTAGE AT NORTHERN STAGE’S HOME IN NEWCASTLE ON THE PENULTIMATE EVENING OF THE PLAY’S THREE-WEEK OPENING RUN BEFORE IT EMBARKES ON A SEVEN-THEATRE UK TOUR. Wicked, which provides specialist transport, crew and production services to the live entertainment and events industry, has been working with Northern Stage, the North East’s largest producing theatre, for 2.5 years.

“It all started simply with a phone call from the theatre’s Production Manager, Chris Slater, to enquire about transporting their Christmas set to the theatre,” said Rebecca McGarvie, Business Manager at Wicked. “Since then, we have toured together nationally on Blue Remembered Hills and Close the Coalhouse Door, and now Catch-22.”

As part of Wicked’s 10th anniversary celebrations, the company has formed a yearlong formal partnership with Northern Stage.

McGarvie explained: “Wicked was born out of theatre and it will always be our passion.

Although we do many different types events nowadays, including a lot of corporate work and music festivals; we wanted to stay true to our roots and help theatre continue to thrive in our region.”

14

WHAT GOES UP MUST COME DOWN Joseph Heller’s best-selling novel - in which the absurdity of warfare and the human condition are comically scrutinised. It was first adapted for the stage by Heller himself in the early 1970s. In this incarnation of the play directed by Rachel Chavkin, the production’s Set Designer John Bausor wanted the plane - one of the key elements in Heller’s adaption of the novel - to take centre stage.

“The plane is actual size,” said Slater. “Our workshops in Wallsend built the plane in four weeks. In fact, we built the entire set ourselves.“ The dismantling of the plane has given us some headaches, actually. Not so much to do with transporting it, but more because of the fact that the venue doors have differing sizes. For example, when we go to Brighton, everything has to fit through a standard double door; as a result everything needs to be dismountable in 6ft modules - quite a task considering that the plane is over 13-metres long!

“However, this does mean the set stacks very neatly onto Wicked’s 13.6m step frame

box trailer, so logistically it’s worked out well.

One of the advantages with having a workshop off-site is that all of the set has already been on a trailer. If it wasn’t going to fit, we would have found out a month ago. It’s assembled in our workshop, then dismantled, and then reassembled here. We only need one trailer… but it’s packed to the brim!”

TRANSPORTING ISSUES As every theatre professional knows, every show is different. “With some shows the trailer will be packed from floor to ceiling, and with other shows there’s a lot of air space because of the shape of the props being transported.

For example, with Catch-22 there’s a lot of dead airspace in the trailer thanks to the shape of the cockpit of the plane,” said Slater.

McGarvie added: “From our point of view, our driver’s task is to make sure that everything is secure, safe and weighted correctly. Our drivers are very hands on and always ready to help the crew.”

Wicked coordinates every aspect of the tour

EVENT FOCUS: Catch 22

Opposite: The centrepiece of the set, a life-sized plane created by Northern Stage, can be disassembled into 6ft chunks to allow for practical transportation. Chris Slater, Production Manager at Northern Stage is pictured in front of Wicked’s truck, complete with Northern Stage branding.

logistics. All transport is subject to strict legal restrictions. McGarvie explained: “Our clients never need to think about the driver’s hours, rest breaks or other legal requirements, we do all that on their behalf. We aim to make our production manager’s job as easy as possible.

For some of our tours we also co-ordinate sleeper buses, coaches or self drive vehicles to transport the cast and crew aswell.

The physical transportation of the set on the road is only half the job, Wicked also liaises with each venue directly. “Ease of access is not always guaranteed. Sometimes theatres are on a main road so we have to corner off the road.

Typically, the oldest most prestigious theatres are a nightmare!”

Due to the nature of tour planning, the show’s route never follows a logical order.

McGarvie said: “Most tours zigzag the country to give the maximum opportunity for sales.

Wherever possible we keep mileage down and operate as environmentally as possible.”

Slater summed up the relationship: “You get a really professional service from Wicked, but you still get that understanding of the business.” He continued: “From the transport side, most of the bigger transport companies, although they’re maybe slightly cheaper, you get the trailer for four hours to unload, and if you go over the allotted time, you pay more.

Wicked understand that a load out may take six hours, so there’s a flexibility there that you don’t necessarily get with other companies.”

WICKED Wicked’s Managing Director Kevin Thwaites set up the company in 2004. McGarvie said: “As an established theatre technician and lighting specialist, Kev brought a wealth of knowledge to Wicked aswell as extensive professional

driving experience.

“In 2010 Wicked won the contract for a national conference tour providing the complete package: truck, crew, kit and production management. Once the word got out, the trucking side really took off for us - we have rapidly increased the fleet and now transport is the biggest part of our business.”

Although she’s worked for Wicked for just five months, McGarvie has been associated with the company for several years, previously working with Wicked while running a performing arts academy. She explained: “We have built an excellent reputation in the industry and with 12 national theatre tours out this season, along with a huge amount of festival, music, corporate and event work we’re in for our busiest summer yet.

“We believe our success is down to truly knowing our clients’ needs along with a detailed understanding of all aspects of production. We don’t do general haulage: we know that for our clients it’s not just about getting from A to B. We really care about everything that we do, and because we are a small company, we can ensure a really personalised service.”

THE PARTNERSHIP As England’s most northern specialist transport company, it was only natural for Wicked to link up with Northern Stage. Production Manager Slater said: “Northern Stage makes ambitious, intelligent and enjoyable theatre, we celebrate new and exciting work, promoting groundbreaking projects that give theatre practitioners a safe and supportive environment to get started in the industry.”

“We have run our own venue at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe for the last few years.

This is a key part of our work, giving a unique platform for theatre companies to showcase their talents at the biggest arts festival in the world. In 2013 Wicked sponsored our technical volunteers who help us to run our Edinburgh venue.”

McGarvie explained why: “Kev started out as a youth theatre technician and is really passionate about investing in young practitioners, giving them their first step on the ladder into the industry. This year we have expanded our support, sponsoring a new Technical Apprentice for the year as well.”

Slater added: “Making the partnership formal has been great for both companies.

Wicked sponsored our Annual Fundraising Dinner in February helping us to support the journeys of even more people into theatre.

Wicked is continuing to grow and this month take on new premises in Darlington. “We’re really excited about the new building which offers extensive warehouse space to cater for our increasing demand for storage aswell as a bigger yard to hold our expanding fleet,” continued McGarvie, “We will also be offering new services so watch this space as there’s more to come later this year.”

When the current Catch-22 tour comes to an end on June 28 at the Richmond Theatre in Surrey, Wicked and Northern Stage will move straight onto Edinburgh Fringe preparations.

The 2014 programme is even more ambitious and if last year’s 7,000 strong audience numbers are anything to go by, this year should be a great success for both companies.

TPi Photo: Rebecca McGarvie www.thewickedcompany.co.uk www.northernstage.co.uk

15

EVENT FOCUS: Gary Barlow

GARY BARLOW’S SINCE I SAW YOU LAST LIGHTING DESIGNER TIM ROUTLEDGE IS ENJOYING ONE OF HIS BUSIEST YEARS TO DATE, AND IS ONE OF A NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS SPEARHEADING A NEW WAVE OF UK LIGHTING AND VISUAL DESIGNERS WHO ARE BRINGING IN A FRESH AND ORIGINAL APPROACH, MIXING THEIR EXPERIENCE OF PRODUCING BEAUTIFULLY BALANCED ILLUMINATION WITH THE RESOLVE TO TAKE A FEW IMAGINATIVE RISKS. TPi REPORTS ON HIS LATEST LIVE DESIGN. Tim Routledge created the lighting and set design for Gary Barlow’s recent Since I Saw You Last arena tour as part of a stylish multi-layered stage show that evolved in collaboration with the tour’s Creative Director Kim Gavin and Production Director Chris Vaughan.

The trio came up with an impressive production design that wowed audiences and critics alike, adding to the huge success of the tour, with Barlow again reinforcing his position as a prolific artist and favourite celebrity.

There were a few key lighting elements supplied by vendor, Neg Earth - that Routledge knew he wanted to incorporate early on, and one of these was a large quantity of Robe’s newest moving light fixtures – ROBIN Pointes and CycFX 8’s.

Routledge has been working for Gary Barlow for about two years. He designed lighting for his 2012 theatre tour which was a lot of fun with the intimacy and close-up-and-personal 16

ambiance of playing theatres, concert halls and small arenas.

This time around, moving up to full scale arenas, the vibe was completely different. The main aesthetic to be conveyed via lighting, explained Routledge , was “contemporary, modern but elegant”.

One of the inspirations for the overall stage design was the National Theatre’s acclaimed production of War Horse, a visual influence that triggered the idea of the 30-metre widescreen upstage. This was constructed from 9mm LED and reached out almost to where conventionally positioned IMAG side screens would reside.

He also wanted to use Clay Paky A.Leda B-Eyes and Light Initiative’s IntelliFLEX Wand 360’s for some real sparkle and eye candy, using the wands to construct an impressive new-age chandelier above the B stage in the centre of the room.

The LED screen split into five six metre wide sections which were moved on a Kinesys system

into multiple dynamic looks. The playback video content was a mix of seriously wide graphics created by a combination of Potion Pictures and Sam Pattinson skilfully combined with PiP pockets of IMAG from a camera mix cut by Matt Askem - whose work with Barlow dates back to Take That days - with Richard Shipman coordinating all the screen management via a d3 Technologies media server, and all video services supplied by Chaos Visual Productions.

The choice of Chaos Visual as video system provider drew on Vaughan’s lengthy relationship with the industry, as he explained. “Chaos and I go back quite a long way, especially at a personal level. Recently of course they provided the screens for the Muse stadium shows for me and did an excellent job, but I’ve known Alex Leinster (Chaos UK’s Director) for many years and in the end this business is about people.

“Alex was my video crew chief on several big tours years ago. Him, Andy Tonks, his crew chief for this tour; Richie Shipman the d3 Operator -

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EVENT FOCUS: Gary Barlow

First page: Creative Director Kim Gavin and Production Director Chris Vaughan were responsible for Barlow’s visual performance. Below: Lighting Designer Tim Routledge employed an array of Robe and Clay Paky lights to accentuate the impressive design of the Total Fabrications built stage.

these are people I know can get the job done, and get it done well. Director Matt Askem couldn’t be happier.”

Taking the widescreen picture as a structural starting point, the hub of Routledge’s lighting design was two 30-metre wide trusses that flanked the screen top and bottom, providing positions to facilitate some seriously wide lighting looks.

In addition to these, dramatically crowning the top of the stage was a 14-metre diameter circle of trussing. Behind the screen was another wide truss holding five trussing pods, each hung with nine of Robe’s CycFX8 in a three by three horizontal formation giving a total of 45 CycFX 8’s.

The ‘home’ position for the CycFX pods was upstage of the band, creating a horizon all the way along the back of the stage. “The fixtures looked stunning and gave us a great background horizon to the show, the movement coupled with the tight focus of each pixel beam gives stunning effects,” enthused Routledge, the first time he has used them on a major tour.

The CycFX 8s were predominantly left in a fixed position because of the quality and clarity of their beams, which effectively gave him a back wall of 360 lights all independently controlled and movable.

On each of the wide horizontal trusses were 18 Robe Pointes and 18 Clay Paky A.leda B-Eye K20s. These and all the other trusses were painted black - so only the lightsources were visible rather than massive expanses of metalwork - subtly toned with Martin by Harman MAC 301’s which helped emphasise the clean look.

Running along both of the horizontal trusses, framing the long screen were two rows of 18 2-lite Moles forming two long parallel lines.

On the circle, which floated like a halo above the elliptical shaped stage, were another 18 Pointes, 12 Clay Paky Sharpy Washes and 10 Vari-Lite V-L3500’s, the latter used as keys for 18

the band. Also on that truss were 12 Solaris Flare high powered LED strobes and another 12 2-lites.

Finally on the floor were another 10 Robe Pointes and B-Eye K20’s which were utilised for aerial effects and back-lighting for Barlow, forming strong classic beamy looks with the modern twist that both types of fixture bring to the stage.

Routledge was impressed with the fact that Robe’s Pointes offer the choice of being a spot, wash, beam or effects fixtures: “You can get the best of all worlds from one fixture,” he said, adding that he’s also a “Massive fan” of small fixtures generally as they don’t spoil the aesthetic of a set - a current trend that most major lighting manufacturers, and especially Robe, are fully embracing.

The stage and integral set staircases - built by Total Fabrications - were outlined with a myriad of LED strips, all under Routledge’s control, for which he used an MA Lighting grandMA2 full size console - his desk of choice for some time.

Production Manager Vaughan selected Total Solutions Group (TSG) to build the stage: “I’ve used TSG before. They built the rolling stage for Take That’s first reunion tour. My history with them goes back to 2000 doing tours with Simon Fuller acts, S Club 7, Pop Idol, those sort of shows. They were the company at the time, and changes in recent years have made them an even more obvious choice for servicing a tour on this scale. They represent really good value for money and their quality of manufacturing has improved greatly over the years. Take the video flex laid into the deck boundaries; TSG have done a really nice job there, from the higher seats in the auditorium it looks absolutely beautiful, a feature not missed when we came to make a DVD of the show.”

After all the excitement of the main stage, refreshingly, the B-stage lighting was no less of a visual event. It comprised a six-metre trussing circle on Kinesys motors flown inside a 12-metre

diameter circle with eight seven-metre arms protruding, so it formed a large radiating sun shape. It was outlined with 144 of the new HD Light Initiative IntelliFLEX Wand 360s hanging vertically. Together with Robe’s Pointes and CycFX 8’s and the B-Eyes, these are also clearly right up there on Tim’s current ‘favourite fixture’ list.

Apart from the fact they look striking and different with their 360 degree viewable LED lightsources, they don’t need feeding with video to produce fantastic, organic flowing effects. There is great scope for funkiness just by running the inbuilt algorithms which are fully user-assignable and customisable.

Rigged to the arms of the 12 metre circle were eight Pointes and eight Sharpy Washes all on two metre drop-arms, and on the floor around the edge of the stage were 12 of Robe’s little LEDBeam 100s.

All lighting equipment was supplied by west London based Neg Earth who have an impressively long and loyal working relationship with Chris Vaughan.

The two-hour set - reflecting the multitude of hits Barlow has penned and sung since his remarkable career burst onto centre stage with the Take That phenomena - kept Routledge on his toes and tested the flexibility and vibrancy of his lighting rig and operating style.

The challenges were many, one of the main ones being keeping it elegant and big - two requirements not always sharing a synergy and without interfering with the screen. The foresight and hard work by all involved in the design and working out the chemistry and interaction between all the elements produced a fabulous looking show in what promises to be a lively year ahead!

TPi Photos: Gary Longstaff Photography www.garybarlow.com, www.robe.cz www.trussing.com www.chaosvisual.com, www.negearth.com

EVENT FOCUS: Adlib Turns 30

ADLIB TURNS 30 LIVERPOOL, UK BASED ADLIB CELEBRATES A LANDMARK 30 YEARS AT THE SHARP END OF THE AUDIO PRODUCTION AND RENTAL MARKET. THE COMPANY HAS BUILT A REPUTATION FOR ON-POINT TECHNICAL EXPERTISE, AND A FRIENDLY APPROACH ALL IN ONE. The decades have flashed by since Andy Dockerty established Adlib in 1984, taking the first steps into building a brand that would grow steadily and diversify to become one of the most successful and respected technical production solutions providers in both the UK and international markets.

“Everton won the FA Cup beating Watford 2-0 in the final,” he reminisced about the Orwellian tinted resonance of 1984. At that time the embryonic Adlib was just Andy with a small PA system together with a VW Van that he had gradually built up engineering for local bands whilst working full time as an electrician at a local firm. The original ‘man-in-a-van’ sound system.

When made redundant from his job and against the backdrop of mass unemployment across the UK, particularly in the North West, Dockerty founded Adlib on one of (the then) 20

Conservative Government’s famous Enterprise Allowance Schemes. Of the 325,000 start-ups that the scheme funded, Dockerty went on to join a few other notable successes including Creation Records guru Alan McGee, Superdry founder Julian Dunkerton, artist Tracey Emin and the founders of Viz Magazine.

Driven by Dockerty’s passion for music, sound engineering and the industry he loves, Adlib has since grown and blossomed into a dynamic multi-faceted operation, currently employing 90 full time staff and a small pool of trusted freelancers. They are headquartered in large premises in Speke near Liverpool Airport.

It’s built up a formidable respect as one of the best and most competent sound rental facilities and is still driven forward by that same dedication with which Andy started the company.

In addition to sound rental, Adlib now also has very proactive lighting, AV, sales and

installation departments as well as a design division, and is an authorised L-Acoustics and Coda ViRAY distributor.

Recently, the Adlib Speakers name was re-launched to market its very successful ownbrand of specialist ‘Made in Liverpool’ speakers - already utilised prolifically for some of its own projects for over a decade - to international markets.

Defining moments over the last 30 years have been numerous. 2003 was definitely one of them. Adlib won the contract to supply audio to the UK and European sections of David Bowie’s A Reality world tour via Bowie’s FOH Engineer, Pete Keppler. This involved a massive investment in equipment which was a huge leap at the time, but paid off enormously in the long run.

Another highlight is the fact that Adlib has always remained an ‘independently’ owned company. This has kept the management

EVENT FOCUS: Adlib Turns 30

Opposite: Adlib recently supplied sound and lighting to American pop punk band, Panic at the Disco’s latest tour; Below: Adlib is the exclusive UK Distributor of Coda Audio; Adlib has supplied sound for world class artists including Lana Del Ray and Disclosure; Founder, Andy Dockerty, started the company in 1984.

structure streamlined and the decision making process agile and helped preserve its unique atmosphere and approach to business. In 30 years, Adlib has never ‘sold its soul’!

Adlib is most definitely a people company and Dockerty is the first person to salute his key management team - the skills, enthusiasm and characters they bring to the mix - underlining that another high point is seeing just how many of the significant individuals like Marc Peers, who joined the company in its first decade, are still there today.

The directors include Dave Kay, Mark Roberts, Dave Jones, Phil Stoker, Peter Abraham and John Hughes, the ‘youngster’ of the family with a mere eight years of service. “Their dedication and expertise has helped build and shape our reputation for excellence as well as being friendly and accessible,” said Dockerty with huge pride.

Continuing on the people note, Adlib has also developed some extremely productive and fruitful long term relationships with clients and suppliers. “I can hand-on-heart say that this industry is responsible for many of my nearest and dearest friends,” declared Dockerty.

The company is currently investing heavily year on year - by May 2014 it had achieved £1m in equipment investments - to ensure it can offer touring clients and a diversity of projects the best and most appropriate technologies.

The company is - and always has been committed to providing active and practical training opportunities and apprenticeship schemes for young people wanting to learn their craft and have a chance to make a serious career in the technical production industry.

While heading up Adlib and driving it into 2014 consumes an enormous amount of Dockerty’s time, he’s still not lost his first love,

mixing sound. He still keeps hands on the board when possible including as FOH Engineer for Texas.

Looking forward to the next 30 years, Dockerty is really hoping that there will be some more time for him to do less administrating and more live mixing: “I would really like the chance for more time to return to what I was doing when I started it all!”

Adlib has an extremely busy few months ahead, with Liverpool hosting the first International Festival for Business (IFB) for which Adlib is a technical partner to Liverpool Vision plus numerous regular festivals, a healthy string of tours and plenty of other projects, so we can expect some serious 30 year celebrations will come later in the year, when everyone has time to draw breath...

TPi www.adlib.co.uk

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21

EVENT FOCUS: Coachella

THE COACHELLA EFFECT THE WORLD-RENOWNED COACHELLA FESTIVAL ONCE AGAIN DREW CROWDS FROM ALL CORNERS OF THE GLOBE FOR A CONSECUTIVE WEEKEND OF FUN-CLAD, DESERT-BASED MUSIC MAYHEM. TPi CAUGHT UP WITH TWO SUPPLIERS - QUANTUM CORP. AND ER PRODUCTIONS - THAT SPECIALISE IN MAKING LIVE EVENT TECHNOLOGY COME TO LIFE. After providing effects for Muse’s Unsustainable European tour in 2013, industry leaders of pyrotechnic and special effects Quantum Corp. joined the British trio for their headlining performances at Coachella festival 2014. David Banks, Vice President and Senior Project Manager took lead for the effects Quantum Corp. provided for both Muse and Lorde’s performances over both festival weekends.

Quantum Special Effects Ltd. provided effects for Muse throughout 2013, including their WWZ performance at Horse Guards Parade as well as their EU tour. The Spitfire Flame system has made quite a name for itself throughout the UK and the rest of Europe.

With stories appearing in national newspapers from rehearsals, the public thought a stadium was burning down as the flames reached great heights. They made headlines again as the Italian authorities threatened to ban them after pictures from the UK Muse shows emerged. Having headlined Coachella once previously, the British trio had to try and top 22

their last performance from four years previous.

Quantum Special Effects handed the torch over to the Quantum Corp. team.

Designed and developed in-house by Quantum Special Effects for festival and stadium requirements, the Spitfire Flame system is capable of reaching heights of 65 foot. The units contain all necessary safety features including double shut off solenoids and pilot flame sensors, inhibiting firing if a pilot light is detected.

The fuel of choice for the Spitfire Flames system is isopar. “This liquid is reasonably docile in terms of flash point and volatility allowing us to tour reasonable amounts of the fluid without special permissions. As a vapour, however, it produces a very calorific flame of good colour and substance. Fuel additionally can be used to add artificial colour to the flame,” said Banks Two large fuel accumulators each side of the stage are pressurised with inert nitrogen gas to a pressure of 40 bar. These are connected to the individual flame units by means of armoured fuel hose. At this point, the system is one of

EVENT FOCUS: Coachella

Opposite: Quantum Special Effects’ US Operation delivered an array of effects for young New Zealand act, Lorde. Below: Muse’s confetti blowers shot out into the audience, creating a crowdengaging live show.

pressurised liquid. The flame is produced by the opening of the inline fuel solenoids, which forces the pressurised fuel threw a nozzle and produces a highly flammable vapour.

This vapour is instantly ignited by means of continuously running pilot light powered by butane / propane mixed gas (similar to a blow torch) attached externally to the rear of the unit.

Because the vapour is effectively still under high pressure once released, this pressure flow has the effect of producing quality fingers of flame.

Banks continued to explain: “The burn is almost 100%, producing very little fallout, unburnt fuel for stage consideration, power and flexibility to fire far more effects than just pyrotechnics. For example, at Coachella we were able to distribute 12 stadium shots loaded with custom printed confetti around the front of house area all fired wirelessly using galaxis 1 way receivers and specially designed Quantum booster packs allowing sufficient change to release a heavy dump solenoid.”

If these impressive flames weren’t enough, the band then commissioned their custom Muse confetti, this time with special US dollar prints especially for the festival. Four larger confetti blowers we’re placed at the front of the stage and Front of House positions for an even crowd distribution.

Quantum Corp. was also on hand with their blowers for Lorde’s performance. The 17-yearold singer has taken the US by storm and sang to strong crowds over both weekends. For the closing of her set, two confetti blowers shot out over the audience.

Having provided effects for P!nk’s Truth About Love world tour as well as Muse and Lorde at Coachella, Quantum Corp. has recently joined cover star Katy Perry on her Prismatic world tour, as well as Queen’s tour later this year. Now based in the entertainment capital Las Vegas, Quantum Corp looks set to keep on expanding its global reach, offering a consistently high service.

LASER WORLD ER Productions has toured with the Pet Shop boys for two years and Coachella festival was a gig on the route of the band’s Electric tour. Said ER Productions’ Ryan Hagan: “We first started by producing laser effects for the Electric music video which was then used as visual content on the video screens during their live shows. The lasers added another layer on top of this and the electronic style of music is simply perfect for laser effects. We use a lot of mirrors and diffraction gratings to expose the audiences too.”

For the Coachella show, ER Productions brought a full arsenal of laser power to Coachella this year for the Pet Shop Boys’ performance. A total of six of Er Productions’ new Phaenon OPSL RGBs were rigged for this performance, complete with large number of mirrors. The gobo wheel within these systems created a new and unique effects.

In conjunction with the six lasers, 16 rotating

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EVENT FOCUS: Coachella

Below: Muse fans enjoyed a full throttle set at Coachella 2014.

burst diffractions add to the shows pre programmed Ariel effects to encompass the audience within the laser display.

Continued Hagan: “The external remote alignment feature was perfect for this gig due to the lasers being rigged in several different locations. The software we used to control the show was a Pangolin.net system.”

On site at Coachella, was Andrew Turner, one of ER’s newer laser techs. Said Hagan: “Andrew has taken to teching and programming lasers so well. His lighting background has obviously helped and he has become a valuable member of the team here at ER.” Even with trusted techs, festivals can still be a tough environment as there are many factors which make festivals a big challenge with various pressures. Coachella was no different: “Coachella has a global reach, so some added pressure was always going to be felt! You always want the best show every night but succeeding in difficult climates will always make you feel a little proud about what you’ve achieved.”

When it came to specific challenges for the ER crew, Hagan noted: “Dust and lasers are not the best of friends but all our crew carry cleaning kits for the lasers to make sure they run at optimum output. No one likes a dirty aperture.” However, the end result was great: “I think the crowds loved the show, so it’s on to the next!” he concluded TPi

www.coachella.com, http://muse.mu http://lorde.co.nz, www.petshopboys.co.uk www.q-sfx.com, www.er-productions.com

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Fresh out the box...

Philips Entertainment’s four premier brands have unveiled their game changing luminaires and control for 2014. Selecon reveals the Rama LED Fresnel, which provides an adjustable cone of light, has a soft edge and is easily blended with adjacent beams to provide even illumination. Showline launches the SL NITRO 510C, offering vibrant colour RGB&W capabilities. Strand Lighting launches the NEO control console, marking the company’s commitment to creating forward-thinking, powerful lighting control consoles. And Vari-Lite’s new VL4000 heralds a new generation of high-performance moving lights.

Philips-New Product Campaign_art.indd 1

01/05/2014 17:33

EVENT FOCUS: Metronomy

METRONOMY NEW YORK-BASED BRITISH DESIGNER, ED WARREN, IS WELL KNOWN FOR HIS INNOVATIVE LIGHTING AND VISUAL DESIGNS AND IS LUCKY ENOUGH TO WORK WITH A LIST OF EQUALLY INTERESTING AND INVENTIVE ARTISTS, ONE OF WHICH IS UK ELECTRONIC ACT, METRONOMY. HE TELLS TPi ABOUT THE CONCEPTS AND KIT ON THE BAND’S CURRENT TOUR...

Ed Warren has designed Metronomy’s lighting since 2007. In March 2014 they launched their Love Letters album, the campaign for which kicked off in the UK exclusively using Robe moving lights - and culminating in a specular show at London’s Brixton Academy, the tour then ventured into Europe and the US. Before the start of each tour, he combines minds with band member Oscar Cash (guitars / keyboards / saxophone) regarding set design, and this time around they came up with the idea of making it resemble a low-budget 1970s music TV show. Warren is also inspired by James Turrell’s light art, and so wanted to have a canvas that offered multiple contrasts for lighting.

Said Warren: “I am inspired by light artists such as James Turrell and Carlos Cruz-Diez. Their use of contrasting colour give me a different perspective on how to present my stage design.

With this show I try to focus more on different surfaces changing colour rather than the usual 26

beams of light with tonnes of smoke. It creates a really sharp, almost curious look on stage, which is kind of a 70s vision of the future. I’m so proud of it and I’d like to thank the people at Hangman and Steel Monkey who helped build the various set pieces and drapes to help make this happen.”

The set pieces incorporate LED tape and were specified by Warren so that each individual surface can be lit. There are eight circuits of LED tape. He decided to make all the band risers diamond shape, downlit with the LED tape, which also lights the front of the keyboards. The set pieces and backdrops are also lit separately - so before even a single light was added to the rig, he had 12 individual surfaces, which could be lit, textured and coloured.

An adaptable floor package was supplied

by Southampton based GLS Lighting, a 2014 TPi Awards sponsor. This went in to all of the venues, comprising eight Robe ROBIN LEDBeam 100s, six ROBIN LEDWash 300’s, two strobes

and a mirror-ball. For the larger venues on the itinerary this was boosted with a U-shaped angled truss in the air, rigged with eight ROBIN Pointes, seven ROBIN LEDWash 600’s, four strobes and three mirror-balls, together with a V-shaped truss at the front yielding six ROBIN 600E Spots and another six LEDWash 600’s.

On the downstage edge of the deck, four Pointes were added, and upstage behind the backdrop were an extra four LEDWash 600’s and three strobes, for backlighting the doublesided backdrop. The LEDBeam 100’s are used for key lighting. It’s an LED orientated show, with the band lit in a variety of colours from below and from the sides as Warren particularly likes the ghost-like effect that this technique produces, as well as the colours available for this. He utilises the tight beams as a regular moving light for a couple of songs.

The LEDWash 300’s onstage are used for firing up the backdrop (by Hangman) and washing the set pieces (by Steel Monkey), and the stage at low level from the sides with their

EVENT FOCUS: Metronomy

Opposite: GLS Lighting supplied Metronomy’s latest tour, with an emphasis on Robe fixtures. Below: The band’s guitarist, Oscar Cash helped to envisage the production design with Lighting Designer, Ed Warren.

fabulous array of colours. The LEDWash 600’s overhead are used for more conventional stage washes and for beaming out into the audience.

Warren uses the individual ring control effects for a couple of songs to change the look and feel of the space, and some of the upstage ones are used to back-light the multi-layer painted backdrop.

The Pointes are his primary profile luminaire.

The beams are wide enough for them to act as regular spot lights with gobos, however they can also become very effective washes, and then morph into being concentrated beam effects. When they have the full rig installed, he uses the Pointes strategically for optimum

impact. The 600E Spots on the front truss are used for precise key lighting. Warren strives to keep any lighting spillage to a minimum, especially with this style of show.

This full production rig was also to be used for the band’s French arena shows. Most of the other European gigs utilised just the essential floor package combined with some house lights. Warren continued: “Every show is something special, as the band are so exciting live, but standout shows for me are always the full production shows where I get to use my full dream rig. The Paris Zenith felt triumphant, as it’s the second time we’ve headlined there now, and we smashed it!

“Alternatively, one thing I really enjoy is using all the different house rigs and the various different lights they have to offer. Grosse Freiheit in Hamburg had no moving lights, just PAR cans, but stood out as one of the best shows on the tour.”

Warren has been using Robe products for some time in his work - other current clients include Mumford & Sons and Phantogram - and he is a big advocate of the brand. Right now, he likes the LED ring control on the LEDWashes because it brings a different dimension. He loves the Pointes for their speed and because, “They are versatile, light, bright, crystal-clear and have very ominous beams. They also

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EVENT FOCUS: Metronomy

Below: Ian Turner of GLS Lighting has ensured that the rental company has been a major stockist and early adopter of Robe products for many years and described Warren’s work as varied in design with always “something new”; Ian Turner of GLS Lighting; The band’s LD since 2007, Ed Warren on his own Chamsys M60 desk.

work like a dream with the mirror-balls. Like a glowing orb of wonder!”

Ian Turner of the tour’s lighting supplier, GLS commented on the collaboration with Warren: “GLS has had a great relationship with Ed Warren for many years now and we always enjoy servicing his many exciting projects. This isn’t our first tour with Metronomy either, the last time we worked with them was while they were supporting [Brazilian nu-rave outfit] CSS which was also being designed by Ed, so it’s great to be providing lights for Metronomy now, in their own right.

“GLS has been a major stockist and early adopter of Robe products for many years; we find their innovative designs and dependable products are exactly what we need for our varied work. The fixtures are powerful and sport impressive features but are also reliable and cost efficient, plus a two-year warranty with prompt support makes all the difference for a busy rental house. We are particularly impressed with the Pointe fixture, which Ed puts to good use in this design. We actually bought the first Pointes in England, and demand for the fixture just keeps growing.

“Ed has a varied design style and doesn’t really reuse much from one design to the next.

There is always something new and unusual to see. In this case it was clearly the LED set pieces which made the stage set up an impressive sight, before the gig had even started.”

Turner continued: “Everyone at GLS has been delighted to be involved in this project. The feedback has been amazing and the audience reaction was massive. We look forward to more to come from this exciting band and to Ed’s next development of the design.”

Warren added: “I like to use Robe products wherever possible. Robe happens to have all the right kind of lights that I needed to create the specific effects that I was after for this design.

I’ve been working with GLS since I started doing lights. I use various different suppliers depending on the tour, and GLS suited this one perfectly. They’ always look after me and they’re pretty awesome people! GLS has an extensive Robe selection in their warehouse.

And the Robe brand is very communicative and offer great support wherever I am in the world.

They create some cracking fixtures!”

For control, Warren is operating all of the lights with his own Chamsys MQ60 console.

He said: “I prefer to use my own desk as it’s comforting to know I’ll have the same control surface wherever I am. It’s my best friend on

tour. It’s ideal for this tour as for a lot of shows I’m morphing and cloning house rigs into my already programmed show and it couldn’t be easier on the Chamsys M60 desk.

“They’ve really upped the hardware now too and I’ve had no problems with it at all. Plus I’m touring without a tech, so the ability to hook my iPad up and use it as a remote from the stage saves me a lot of traipsing back and forth from FOH,” the LD said.

Metronomny’s Production Manager, Gina Coates concluded: “Ed’s light show has been fantastic. It’s added another dimension to the stage show and has received a brilliant response. GLS have also been wonderful to work with and I wouldn’t hesitate to use them again on another tour.”

The tour is currently in the US following its European jaunt, and will move on to assorted international festivals throughout 2014.

TPi www.metronomy.co.uk www.nextlevellights.com www.glslighting.com www.hangman.co.uk www.steelmonkey.co.uk www.robe.cz www.chamsys.co.uk

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EVENT FOCUS: CATO Academy

CATO ACADEMY IS LAUNCHED CATO MUSIC’S ‘SCHOOL FOR ROADIES’ HAS ARRIVED FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF PRODUCTION PROFESSIONALS. TPi HEARS THE LATEST FROM CATO’S MD, GLEN ROWE. Cato Music has launched its ‘school for roadies’, CATO Academy. The launch took place in true CATO style with a fun and relaxed party for industry friends and colleagues at its offices in Wandsworth, London. The party was themed around the English holiday, St.George’s Day and included DJs playing British-only music, seats made out of hay bales and the slaying of a (piñata) dragon. Who said chivalry was dead!

A party isn’t a party without great refreshments and food and drink was supplied by catering company, Feedback Event Catering with bottles of cider supplied by Hornsby’s.

Dishes included fish and chips, a traditional hog roast, cupcakes, and drinks included the traditional British tipple of Pimm’s, Captain Morgan’s rum and Sagres beer.

The launch party was in celebration of the CATO Academy which opened in May. The Academy will teach a course for young students who want to get into the music industry to undertake jobs such as tour managers, production managers and backline technicians.

As stated by CATO MD, Glen Rowe in last month’s Vital Stats, the course was actually written some five years ago and had so far been taught from a music school in Guildford by Rowe, Matthew Russell and Deptford John who all thought it was time to bring it in-house.

Rowe, who is the current holder of TPi’s Tour Manager of the Year award stated: “I am so proud of the course we are bringing home to CATO. I feel it’s my time to pass on the baton to younger, fitter and stronger young adults who can bring up the next set of festival, arena and stadium headlining bands. Being paid to travel the world and to work with bands and artists is like winning the golden ticket for Charlie’s 30

Chocolate Factory!”

It’s is an industry, work-experience-based course which is supported by industry sponsors, giving students a way to get the best services from CATO’s partners. As a result of this sponsorship, Rowe and co can offer five free scholarships. The sponsors are MM Band Services, Shure Distribution, Sound Moves UK, KB Event, William Morris Entertainment, VER, SONOS, Spotify, O2 and The Appointment Group.

Continued the MD: “CATO are going to give away five free scholarships per year for those who can’t afford the course fees. This is supported by our incredible industry sponsors who believe in what we are building.

“I am very proud of this course. It’s taught by the kind of people I love to be around. We are not teachers, we are road crew and proud of it. I want to give something back, and shape the next generation of hero roadies. Next year we’re aiming to celebrate St.George’s Day with a festival of new bands, run by this year’s students.

St.George is the patron saint of scouting. It’s not that far off roadie-ing, is it?!”he joked.

CATO Music work with the likes of Muse, Queen, Rihanna, Mumford & Sons, Take That, Robbie Williams, Kylie, Bastille, Haim and many more through tour management, tour production and its very private rehearsal space.

This setting allows for a perfect environment in which young adults can learn about live production opportunities from the ground up. The company also recently announced the launch of its first American office in LA, which will open in July.

Added Rowe: “If the young roadie in me could see how far you can get in this business by being honest, hard-working and remaining

positive, then I would have hung up my drumsticks a few years earlier! I remember the moment very well; I had no money, and I mean zero cash in the world, and was on tour as the drummer in a grunge band. The band had a shit record deal and we spent our last few pounds on spare guitar strings. Meanwhile, our tour manager got to travel the world, have more fun than us, and get paid for it. The step over the line into the crewing world was a simple choice; I’ve never looked back!

“There is a lot of work out there for great crew. Everyone is looking for new tour managers and production managers for the next generation of bands. A lot of sound engineers come through, but you also need someone to lead the whole production. To be a good leader you need excellent communication and an understanding of all other touring departments such as sound, lighting and backline; we teach this vocabulary to future crews. The essential personality trait [of a leader] is staying calm under pressure. You may be panicking underneath, but don’t show it.”

Having spent much of his own time as a musician surrounded by male touring crews, Rowe also has a tip: “I really want to encourage more female tour managers to get involved... I think women are naturally good at calming bands down. There’s less ego and less testosterone!”

Courses are being taught now for people aged 18-30. For further info of the course or to talk about potential partnerships, please contact Gaby Cartwright: gaby@catomusic.co.uk or (+44) 20 8877 3700.

TPi Photos: Sophia Schorr-Kon www.catomusic.com/education

EVENT FOCUS: Brit Floyd

BRIT FLOYD HAVING TOURED NORTH AMERICA WITH A RIG OF ELATION PROFESSIONAL LIGHTING THAT INCLUDES PLATINUM BEAM 5R AND DESIGN SPOT 1200C MOVING HEADS, BRIT FLOYD’S DISCOVERY IS A STUNNING THREE-HOUR MUSICAL JOURNEY THAT RECREATES THE LEGENDARY BAND’S MUSIC AND GIVES AUDIENCES A RETROSPECTIVE LOOK AT A CLASSIC LIGHTING SETUP. Billed as ‘The World’s Greatest Pink Floyd Show’, Brit Floyd has performed to over one million fans around the world since its first show in Liverpool in 2011. Lighting design is by Dave Hill, who has been designing Brit Floyd for years and incorporates the Platinum 5Rs into the trademark Pink Floyd arch and circle light show.

“The Platinum Beam 5R’s do most of the big effects and are situated around the circle and on the trusses above,” stated Hill of the narrow 2.5 degree ACL-type beam effect that can project 12 colours and houses rotating gobos, all in a small package.

“I particularly like the speed of the 5R’s in motion, and they make a wonderful contribution to the show. The Design Spot 1200’s are on the floor and do wonderful gobo and beam effects through the band.”

Out on the road with the production is Lighting Director Stu Dingley, who started working for Brit Floyd in 2012 as an operator 32

and works with the Elation gear on a daily basis.

“The Elation equipment is really very good for the price and they are robust fixtures,” he commented. “The 46 Platinum Beam 5R’s in the rig are versatile fixtures that enable us to create large, aerial looks as well as bring the show back to basic rock and roll washes using the frost and colour correction filters. They are also fast and very bright.”

Used as part of the floor package are eight Elation Design Spot 1200Cs, a hybrid spot /wash fixture that Stu says has required maintenance only a handful of times in the last couple of years. “The optics are excellent,” he said, “often rivalling output from other fixtures with larger apertures and lamps. We noticed this especially on the shows where we had to hire in an alternative floor package.”

The Brit Floyd production has developed and grown in size since its inception and is now a highly precise show with timecoded lighting, media and lasers. Video Designer for

the show is Bryan Kolupski who accompanies the musical performance with original video and new animation inspired by the brilliant artwork designs of longtime Pink Floyd collaborator, Storm Thorgerson.

The show is produced and promoted by UK-based CMP Live, who supplies the Elation lighting gear. US tour support in the form of lighting gear supply and personnel is from Performance Lighting of Chicago. “Elation are affordable, reliable and do a great job for us and Pink Floyd’s music,” stated CMP Live owner, Chas Cole. “The price, quality of the beam and reliability is great considering the very large number of shows we do a year.”

Brit Floyd wraps up the North American leg of Discovery on June 22 with a European tour scheduled to kick off in early October 2014.

TPi www.britfloyd.com www.cmpentertainment.com www.elationlighting.com

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

KATY PERRY’S PRISM VISION CREATED AND DESIGNED BY BAZ HALPIN, 18-MONTH LONG TOUR PRISMATIC IS KATY PERRY’S BIGGEST AND MOST DEMANDING TO DATE. ACHIEVING CREATIVE PERFECTION THORUGHOUT, ALONGSIDE THE PLETHORA OF PROPS AND COSTUMES, THERE ARE TECHNICAL FIRSTS WITH SOFTWARE INTEGRATION NEVER SEEN BEFORE ON A TOUR OF THIS SIZE. TPi’S KELLY MURRAY CHATS TO THE CREW...

As we pull up the the LG Arena in Birmingham on an uncharacteristically hot and sunny English day, troupes of crew members and trucks full of wardrobe changes fill the back of the venue. At the helm of the tour is Jay Schmit, Katy Perry’s Production Manager, a man who having first had a career as a US Navy Fire Control Officer, runs the inside of a world-class production like a slick operation indeed.

He was a carpenter by trade when his skill turned into a touring career. “I initially gained employment with Stageco. I worked for them for a number of years from the US office, but I toured internationally with acts such as U2, The Rolling Stones, Dave Mathews Band and Metallica. I left Stageco in early 2000 and started working as a rigger and went from being a rigger to a 34

stage manager and then into production management,” he said.

It’s 10 years later and Schmit has PM’d for the likes of Paul Simon, Simon and Garfunkel, Journey, Alanis Morrisette and Shakira.

“I have been with Katy for just over four years now,” he told TPi in the production office he shares with the rest of the production team: Kim Hilton, Tracy Baiotto and Tasha McCartan.

As a PM, I typically try to use the same vendors.

A relationship with a vendor grows over time and you become very tuned into each other’s needs and capabilities. It’s an easy prediction of what you are going to receive and you know the product and the service you’re going to get.

If you’re loyal to an individual or a company, I believe that they will give you the same back and it seems to have worked so far. I don’t think it is a standard across the board, but that’s what

I tend to do.

“I put together a rigging team that we have worked with over the years. Chuck Melton is my Lead Rigger who has been in the business longer than me. I have learnt a lot from him; I trust him emphatically with decision making because I think that is the foundation for every show.”

For Prismatic, Load Cell Rental provided weighting documentation for the safety of the show. “The rigging is first for a reason: it has to dictate how and where you put your stage, it dictates accessibility for all the fly gags. With Chuck’s expertise we have a really strong team,” continued Schmit.

“Alan Doyle is my Stage Manager and we have been friends for years, he has done a lot of big tours and he comes with knowledge on how to stage-manage big shows so we started

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

discussing how we were going to build this crew. His assistant, Tim Kitchens, is our touring electrician.

Cat Entertainment Services is subletting us some generators but it’s not like we have a power team out here. Tim has done a fantastic job!”

Doyle has also worked with the singer for a few years and relishes the size and scale of Prismatic. He told TPi: “We’re using pretty much every gag known to man. It’s a very busy show, so it’s been quite a challenge but it’s just common sense, that’s what it comes down to. We are doing pretty well with all of it at the moment, even though it’s in its early stages.

“You just have to make it happen, especially with the size and the scale we have here. A big part of the set is the moving triangle stage and the moving video wall, those kinds of pieces take up a lot of space, so we need a lot of trucks!” concluded Doyle.

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TRUSTED VENDORS Vendors for Prismatic include PRG Nocturne for video, Upstaging and Neg Earth for Lighting, Clair Global for audio, TAIT for staging and automation duties, Quantum Special Effects for pyrotechnics, ER Productions on lasers, Beat The Street and Transam for transport, Mojo Barriers, and Eat Your Hearts Out providing catering.

For Schmit, there is also huge emphasis on the importance of freighting. His supplier of choice, Soundmoves, has people on the ground in both the US and the UK, ensuring a smooth transition is felt.

Said Schmit: “Martin Corr is my guy in the UK and Justin Carbone in the US; as a production manager, those guys are like my two best friends because a production manager has to put trust and faith in freight, if freight doesn’t make it or isn’t safe, there are very real consequences. I really trust their decision making. The added value is that they are very competitive price wise, and the value in their services and the abilities they offer, is to me personally - bar none - the best. I can’t really live up to my potential without them.”

Once the production equipment arrived in the UK safely, a portion of rehearsals were done in Belfast, and started with the band and

the choreography in February. In March the production went into the Sports Arena in LA. Once all the production components were made, they could be shipped to the UK for full technical and dress rehearsals.

Schmit continued: “Katy’s Creative Designer, Baz Halpin, has been around her for the last three or four years. He is very pragmatic and adaptable to limitations, and then Nick Florez and RJ Durell are her choreographers, but they also have a big hand in the creative side. Baz and Katy spend an immense amount of time together going through the creative aspects of the show and Nick and Jay help bring that creative bit to life but Katy drives it all.

“Part of the show is called ‘catoure’ which is all about her cats, because she is a cat person!

It’s all about cats and fashion, that’s who Katy is. Sometimes the most prominent part is her wardrobe; it’s very stylish.

“This show is unique and very ambitious. There is a hyper neon section of the show, which is all about her Teenage Dream phase.

She is not just up there doing her hits though, she is doing a very dedicated performance that has props and animation; when you turn the lights on, it becomes her village of fun!”

Indeed, Perry’s dedication to her live shows and her fans has been noted on the tour. “Out of all the artists I have worked for, Katy definitely has a love for her fans - she knows what her fan base means to her. It’s very refreshing.

There are pop artists who take that for granted, not maliciously but over time it becomes a lot to deal with, yet Katy is very sincere in what her fans have done for her. Her fans have given her this opportunity and I think that is the way she sees it, these huge tours are down to them truly supporting her, and she genuinely knows that they’ve given her this opportunity.

From everything that I know about her, that’s what I see every day, and that’s very, very rare.”

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Opposite: Katy Perry’s Prismatic tour was performed like a Broadway style theatre show: in sections with incredible detail to props and choreography, such as the Egypt scene shown here. Below: The Catoure section of the show is a true reflection of Perry’s loves: cats, costumes and stage performance!

CREATIVE CHOREOGRAPHY “We started with Katy in 2010 and we worked on the California Dreams tour. This one has been a fantastic leap for us,” said

BroadWeigh

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

Below: PRG Nocturne supplied the video needs for the tour, with its own V9 Classic and V9 Lite video screens.

Choreographer RJ Durell. “Katy was really excited to create concepts within every song of the show so there’s lots of fun things happening throughout the performance. I think it’s the best way to be for any artist because you really want the show to represent who they are and what their brand and image is, so collaborating with someone like Katy is amazing; she puts in so many ideas. I will say our pre-production meetings were so much fun, its like the more outlandish she can be the more excited everyone is. We could have planned three tours with the amount of ideas we had, and we’ve ended up here... which is pretty large scale!” he explained.

Colleague Nick Florez added: “This is literally her vision come to life; we were in a restaurant and she was sketching ideas out on her dinner napkin! She’s very hands on with the creation of every single detail.”

There is a total of 10 dancers and a massive amount of costumes. He continued: “It has been ever-evolving because of course artistically she is constantly getting new inspiration so it has been a fun but wild process. It is the most fun we have had on tour and I have loved all the work we have done. We get to do aerial and ground choreography and Katy’s really fun too because her songs and her visual content is so diverse that it keeps it very exciting for us.”

Durell concluded: “This is the hardest tour as far as what Katy is putting herself through physically and emotionally; the bar has been raised all around on this tour. She is very appreciative of her audience and one of her 36

main questions was “how close can I get to the fans?” and that’s why our runways are huge.”

FOH AUDIO FOH Engineer Pete Keppler is in his fifth year as Katy Perry’s touring sound engineer. Keppler has also specified the tour’s PA system, from sound supplier, Clair Global. For his needs at FOH, the experienced mixer is a fan of the ever popular combination of DiGiCo consoles and Sennheiser and DPA microphones: He told TPi: “I started using DiGiCo about two years ago and I absolutely love the way these desks sound. I’ve used Waves plug-ins for years, so when DiGiCo put out the SD5 desk, the combination of it and the Waves server and MultiRack system worked out really well. Manny [on monitors] and myself decided we would both use this console, and the real beauty is that we don’t need a splitter anymore; all of our inputs go directly into an Optocore fibre system, and we can distribute audio anywhere we need to in the system”.

While I use a fair amount of the Waves plug-ins, I really like what SD5 has to offer as well. I use the onboard dynamic EQ for Katy’s vocal, the Digitube - a tube emulator which gives me some saturation on various inputs, and I use the onboard graphic EQs on vocals: when Katy comes down to the B stage, I switch the graphics in. When she gets out in front of the rig, things change. Any mic will respond a bit differently when it’s 110 ft in front of the PA.” For the singer’s vocal equipment, Keppler has chosen an MD5235 Sennheiser capsule on

an SM5200 Series transmitter. “Katy, and our backing vocalists Cherie and Elle all use the 5235. It sounds great. DPA has also worked it’s way in to the mix: The stage set-up on this tour dictates that we can’t use overhead mics on drums, so we chose the DPA 4099 as close mics under the individual cymbals. That position is a real test for a microphone, and the 4099 really came through.”

MONITORS Monitor Engineer Manny Barajas has been with Katy Perry’s live production since November 2010, meaning he first came on the road with the star for her California Dreams tour. Like Keppler at FOH, Barajas also chose a DiGiCo desk. “We both chose the SD5 because we knew we wanted to go with DiGiCo. We first thought of the SD10 but as our input list grew bigger and bigger, the SD5 seemed to be the best choice. We both liked the single engine and the multiple screens.

“We use Sennheiser SKM5200-II transmitters with MD5235 capsules and EM3732-II recievers.

For in-ears, we have the Sennheiser 2000’s with Jerry Harvey molds. A combination of JH7’s and JH13’s for the band. On Katy, I am using the JHFRs to be exact. They‘re the new model that feature an ambient port with a full response sound.

“For Katy, everything has to match the wardrobe and the look of the show. The fun bit is that there is a specific microphone to match the different looks of this show, so all the Sennheiser’s are customised by our art

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

Below: A Prism structure was used as a centre stage prop to reflect the album’s title.

department. They’ve added lots of cool thing like sequins; they call it ‘bedazzling’.

The microphones not only sound great, but now they match a lot of the set and wardrobe because if you look closely at a lot of the props they have jewels on them.

“It’s a very fun show to work on, but I do have a lot of people to look after, so it’s is a full plate in monitor world,” added Barajas. “For us, the biggest challenge is winning the RF war. Everything needs to be wireless and the number of UHF frequencies we have to deal with is around 70, but with the help of Niall Selvin, our RF tech, we are winning that war everyday.”

Barajas also had a great tip: rechargeable batteries! “I went to my production manager and told him that we need over 200 batteries a night to run this show, he was quite surprised and told me to find a better solution. A friend then told us about Fisher Amp chargers.

I’ve worked out that in a few months the rechargeable battery system will have paid for itself, and as we’re on the road for almost two years, our tour accountant loves that; now we’ll never run out of batteries and stop any unnecessary waste.

RF Niall Slevin, RF Technician for Prismatic has freelanced for sound supplier Clair for some years. Although the in-ear monitors were specified by Monitor Engineer Barajas, Slevin agreed that Sennhieser equipment was the right choice. He said: “I would have chosen them; the microphones have a large RF range so you can go into different venues and find frequencies. The Sennheiser 2000 Series have a very strong sound in the air and they have been tried and tested for so many years that it makes them very reliable for a tour of this scale.”

The Sennheiser 2000 Series works in conjunction with the comms, which are used for on-stage management communications, such as the safe operation of the built-in stage lifts.

Continued Slevin: “They are separate from the audio and the performers, but are integrated into the show and how it runs.

They are two independent communication systems, one does the stage management operations and the Sennheiser gear does the in-ears and microphones, for audience communication.

“With RF ranges getting squeezed all

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

Below: Production trucks were supplied by Transam, which provided an incredible 30 trailers for production logistics; Sennheiser microphones were customised for the singer to ensure they matched each act during the vibrant show; Eat Your Hearts Out cooked for the entire tour after a successful previous run with the California Dreams tour. Menu options included tuna steak, pictured; PRG’s MBox media servers controlled the show’s video playback.

the time, technology must overcome trying to fit large amounts of RF into such a small range.

It’s actually very challenging because we are bringing this system in from North America to Europe and then back to North America again, so we plan and design in advance in order to cover the territories due to the different frequency ranges.

“A lot of the designing for the RF spectrum goes on way before we even leave the warehouse, and that is becoming the normal procedure now, because space is so tight. If you analyse an environment correctly, hopefully you will have a system that lets you do what you need to create a strong RF signal, especially on a stage design this long,” concluded Slevin.

RELIABLE PA For the PA requirements, a mixture of Clair products were chosen. FOH Engineer Keppler explained: “We used Clair on the last tour with a slightly smaller version of this PA, so I knew exactly what I wanted this time around. Clair Global is a great company and I’ve had nothing but great experiences with them.”

For the main PA, Keppler chose an i5D, it is similar in components to Clair’s smaller system, the i5, usually coupled with the i5B bass cabinet.

He explained his reasoning: “Instead of having two boxes to make up the same compliment of drivers, with the i5D it is all in one box…

It is much faster to rig and fly, and it sounds amazing. The audio signal is fully digital all the way from the stage to the amps, and we drive 38

the entire PA from the matrix outputs on the SD5 to feed the various zones of the PA. The side hangs are Clair’s i3’s and next to them we have a separate hang of BT-218’s which provide subwoofer compliment for the side seating.

“In today’s configuration we aren’t using a rear hang because we are flat up against the back wall, but for bigger venues when we do need to implement rear fill, we use a smaller line array called the iDL.” The nature of this tour doesn’t allow Keppler much subwoofer placement on the floor, so the majority of Prismatic’s sub generation is done in the air. “The i5D is amazing… The main PA puts 64 18-inch drivers in the air, in a cabinet that is very well-tuned, and you can really feel the sub energy all the way up into the top rows of the arena. We have some locations on the floor where we’ve added a few subs to fill in; a new box called the CP-118, which is a single 18-inch self powered subwoofer.

“We are using three of those per side, but they’re hidden in keeping with the look of the show. There are some extra BT-218s on the floor as well, a further six more of those are used in the ‘reflection section’ [the VIP area directly in front of the stage]. Katy really likes the club feel - she likes to really hear it thumping,” said Keppler.

The box count for the main PA comprises per side - main hangs of 16 i5Ds, side hangs of 16 i3s and eight BT-218’s, eight iDLs for rear hangs, three BT-218s and three CP-118’s for ground subwoofers and for front fill, four P2

loudspeakers.

Ben Rothstein, System Tech, for Clair Global told TPi: “The PA we have is what Pete wanted and what he felt was the best PA application for this tour, given the nature of the music and the various size of the venues. It’s a rather large arena system and we knew what we had to achieve with it; getting a really clear, loud sound everywhere in the venue.

“We were given drawings of what the production looked like and the department heads and PM Jay Schmit had a meeting to figure out how to piece everything together and where to put certain things, especially how the subwoofers and front fills were going to fit on the stage.

“As far as the speakers go, we just found a way of making the puzzle fit together and so far I’d like to think it’s working pretty well!

My main responsibility is to actually make sure that everybody hears the show to its full potential. We come in every morning and we take measurements of the length and the height of the different seats in the venue because we need to point speakers at them. I try and get the speakers as high as possible in most cases, as it makes my job easier! Usually the higher the PA is, the easier it is to shoot down at people.

We’re looking forward to some of the bigger venues that we can use this system in.”

The Birmingham LG Arena TPi visited threw a few challenges up for Rothstein, especially since his preference is for a high positioned PA. “The ceiling is about 40ft lower than what we would

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

Below: FOH Engineer, Pete Keppler has been mixing Katy Perry’s tours for the last five years. He was on the road with a DiGiCo SD5, also the desk of choice for monitor world.

ideally like it to be today. It’s always a back and forth battle because you want everyone to be able to see everything in the show, but we also have the responsibility to give people the best sound quality possible,” he said.

“We use Lab.gruppen PLM 20000Q amplifiers which have the Superior Lake processing built into them. We are currently using version 6.2 of Lake’s Controller Software which is working out really well for us. We’re also using LM44’s for processing. We use one channel as processing for the CP-118’s because they are self-powered. I have a module inserted so that I can delay and time align it to the rest of the system. The other LM44’s are used as backups for EQ when we do big festivals.”

LIGHTING OPERATION Firmly planted at FOH is Kathy Beer, Prismatic’s Lighting Director. Beer has previously worked with the world-renowned Halpin, so knew his strong reputation when she came into his creative design for this tour.

Beer has been the LD since the tour went into rehearsals, with Programmer Eric Marchwinski at the helm of the complicated software set up. Beer makes sure everything is working and operating during show time each night and is able to manually change things throughout Perry’s performance from her MA Lighting grandMA2 desk. Beer said of the grandMA2: “I love the console. It’s a very powerful console with great networking capabilities and wonderful flexibility.”

PROGRAMMING TPi was lucky enough to catch up with Lighting 40

Programmer, Eric Marchwinski in Birmingham, on his whirlwind trip to the UK. As the creative choreography is a massive part of this theatrical style production, Marchwinski explained the importance of dance and choreography tracking and the approach he used while creating the show cues: “Baz’s approach to such a visual spectacle is to isolate the action, and draw the audience’s attention to where the story is taking place. This requires some very tedious programming to tightly track the choreography around the stage. The technical challenge is that all of the lights are on trusses hung at 45 degree angles. When the lights are hung in this way, you can’t just cross fade from one position to another; you have to shape the path of the move by offsetting individual timing for pan and tilt; that was a major challenge.”

Marchwinski and Earlybird Visual built an MA3D file for the show in order to allow for some offline programming, as well as facilitate the use of some very powerful positional features within the console: “MA Lighting has a great feature that allows you to control the lights using XYZ coordinates as opposed to pan and tilt,” he said. “This also allowed us to utilise a brand new protocol called Posi Stage Net which was developed by MA Lighting with VYV, a media server company in Canada. We are the first tour to have TAIT’s Navigator system speaking over PSN to the console, and we use this method of real time tracking at many points in the show.

“TAIT and Navigator are very good at integrating with our control system, and we pushed the concept of this type of cross communication to over 100 channels of status

based feedback information from all of the moving elements in TAIT’s world. Something that really sets this tour apart is its scale, in addition to the amount of new technology and new protocols we have.

“All of this networking and cross talk required a stable backbone. In total there are five independent networks in use over a single ring fiber network.” Control Freak Systems helped in specifying this system which Upstaging provided and executed perfectly.

Programming is a great balance of technical skill and artistry, especially with a designer like Halpin, whose vision allowed Marchwinski a lot of artistic freedom. Working with Halpin has helped Marchwinski appreciate and expand what it takes to make the show design the best it can be. “If you’re going to cut 20 lights from the rig so that it allows the 3D gag to work, you’re ok with that since it is for the benefit of the show as a whole, it’s not all about the lights, all the time.” he said.

In addition to programming the lighting, Marchwinski was responsible for the video playback as well. “We chose PRG’s Mbox due to its stability and great content management tools. For our video visualiser, we used a ‘Freakulizer’ system which takes live inputs from the MBoxes. This allowed us to look at how the wall moves would appear before we had the final product. To further the integration, we had TAIT sending us realtime data for the large moving elements, which would in turn move these elements in both the lighting and video visualisers in real time.” he commented.

JT Rooney was the Implementation Director.

In terms of technical equipment for the lighting

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

Below: ER Productions’ Laser Tech, Alex Oita; The Clair PA system, chosen by FOH Engineer, Pete Keppler who cited: “Clair Global is a great company and I’ve had nothing but great experiences with them.” ; Katy Perry’s fun and excitable tour included giant props for her Kitty Purry alter ego.

design, Marchwniski said that although the fixtures in use were mainly to Halpin’s specification, the console was his choice: “I chose the grandMA2, theres no other desk that could have stepped up to this challenge in my opinion. We have two consoles and five NPUs and we’re driving around 24,000 active channels of DMX across over 48 universes. The MA2 is fantastic; it’s second to none in terms of data management and how it can organise this much information. The MA’s versatility is amazing, as proven by all of the control we have from one location. The MA2 is not just a lighting desk, its a show control console.”

THE LIGHTING RIG The rigging vendor for Prismatic in the US is Upstaging, with Neg Earth supplying the UK and European legs of the tour. Julian Lavander of Neg Earth commented: “This tour is a joint venture between Upstaging in the US and Neg Earth in the UK and Europe. The lighting crew is

made up of four American and five UK lighting staff. Our two companies work very closely together and share the same ethos for quality and attention to detail to ensure a seamless transition from the US into Europe.”

The fixtures chosen are made up 64 Martin

by Harman Viper Air FX, 91 Philips Vari-Lite VL3500 Wash FX, three Philips Vari-Lite 3015 Spots, 20 Philips Vari-Lite VL3515’s, 39 GLP X4’s, 62 Clay Paky Sharpys, 36 Clay Paky Sharpy Washes, 27 Solaris Flares, 80 Chroma Q ColorBlock 2 and about 600 channels of custom LED Lightbox by TAIT, which goes around the edge of the stage deck and various led within set elements.

Continued Marchwinski: “The Martin Viper Air FX is a profile fixture with a beam lens on it, which I’ve been really happy with. Baz and I used them back on Britney Spears in Las Vegas this past winter. They have a lot of punch, are lightweight, and have a high output. The gobo selection is even more versatile than the regular

Viper Profile, with very fast optics. We get lots of mileage from them.”

“The GLP X4’s do all of our dancer’s sidelight. They are lining the offstage and downstage edges of the stage. Up in the air, there is a Viper and a Sharpy Wash hung in the large 45 degree rake trusses, with CB2s scattered throughout. The Sharpy Washes have a very high output and fast colour mixing.

They’re becoming more present in many lighting rigs because they’re such a great fixture.

“The Philips Vari-Lite VL3500’s are on the two large triangle trusses. They light the entire runway, front light and back lighting, as well as lots of audience and aerial effects. The VL3500 has been a staple fixture of the industry for years, and it was a great choice for its use in this show. This rig was designed very well, and fixture placement was very well thought out.

We’ve definitely pushed it to do some great stuff and been able to come up with unique ideas and unique looks for each song.”

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

“The amount of gear and technology surpasses what we could do in a stadium because in a stadium show you are limited by the fact you’re outdoors and therefore open to bad weather. The crew has been fantastic, both from Upstaging and Neg. Kudos to crew chief John Chiodo and the team for keeping this 450 head monster working perfectly every day,” he concluded.

VIDEO Katy Perry is a fairly new client for video supplier, PRG Nocturne but the rental house was gunning to work with the singer long term, as Mark O’Herlihy - PRG Nocturne’s Account Director for Katy Perry - explained: “We did her shows at the Roundhouse in London when she was playing the iTunes Festival last year and it was the first time we’d used our V9 screens and made a reverse triangle. We hoped that’s where we could put things in motion for getting on the tour.”

And it worked out just so, with the company doing the full world tour between its UK and US operations. The V9 screens are a central focal point throughout the entire production and are a vital look for both the show design and the visual content platform. The success of PRG Nocturne winning the contract perhaps lay with its own proprietary screens and bespoke fly pack camera systems.

O’Herlihy continued: “We utilised our

42

V9Lite (9mm) for the three pyramid shapes, its light weight, flies out fast and delivers a stunning image. We also incorporated the V9 Classic which is a 48 by 12 pixel strip which was built into elements of the set design. The show opener has Katy Perry appearing from a pyramid feature those triangles are also made up of our V9 Classic.

“The PRG Nocturne camera system is made up of five Grass Valley HD DK 6000’s and a couple of Panasonic AW-HE120’s Robo cams.

There’s are a couple of long lenses which are staggered at FOH, the rest are handheld,” stated O’Herlihy. Content is driven by four PRG MBox media servers controlling all of the media playback. The Mbox plays a big part of the integration network in the show; PRG’s Mbox Remote was used to configure output settings and the Mbox media servers were programmed from FOH and timecoded into the show for the video section.

For live video control, a Grass Valley Kayak HD system is in use. IMAG is a standard side screen package (21.5 by 11ft screens) used with four Barco FLM-HD 20k projectors.

In terms of running the live show, PRG Nocturne’s Video Engineer, Eugene McAuliffe stated: “We’ve got playback from the MBoxes coming into our system, five manned cameras and one robotic camera. Omar [Montes-Rangel, Video Director] gets to pick and choose what goes onto the screens - live content from the

camera operators and then the media servers come in within the song content for the screens.”

Video Crew Chief, John Moore added: “Building the show takes a lot of patience and a lot of coordination from everyone involved; they all have to know their roles when we’re bringing the screens in. It basically boils down to knowing where to be at the right time, and knowing which piece comes next in all of the departments. On each of the triangles you have lighting, pyrotechnics, lasers, video, with carpentry putting it all together. It takes serious coordination between all of these teams; it’s like everybody playing nicely in the sandbox to make it all happen! You certainly get to know each other very, well very quickly and it’s a great team out here.”

The busy tour gained further momentum with extra filming needs at one particular show. Video Director Omar Montes-Rangel commented on the challenge of filming for Billboard during the early stages of the tour: “We had five additional cameras for a live three minute shoot in Newcastle. It was televised live, so that was quite demanding for us. In general, there are certain shots that we need to get every night but I let them roll with what’s going on for everything else. We base it on the feedback from the audience and how Katy’s doing on stage so the camera positions do vary on a daily basis.”

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

Below: Stage Manager, Alan Doyle with Head Carpenter, Luke Larson; System Tech, Ben Rothstein of Clair Global at FOH; The audio crew with RF Tech, Niall Slevin (second from the right); Monitor Engineer, Manny Barajas in monitor world, with his DiGiCo SD5.

The video crew from PRG Nocturne is completed by Projectionist Scott Grund and Camera Operators Jack Schmidt, Jay Strasser, Will Stinson and Luis Ramos. Concluded O’ Herlihy: “They’re all good crew, we have some really strong players in the video team, so this tour is in safe hands.”

Rich Rowley, Chief Sales Officer for PRG Nocturne was also onsite for the star’s Birmingham show.

He added: “The UK leg is just the start of an 18-month journey with Katy Perry and we are delighted to be supporting the tour.”

VISUAL CONTENT Ohio-based Lightborne created the tour’s video content. Visuals Director, Ben Nicholson stated: “Working on Katy Perry’s Prismatic tour was one of the great pleasures we have had in the past few years. Top to bottom, the production was buttoned up, professional, and super creative.

Katy Perry and her team have created an environment where we could work quickly and efficiently through a mountain of content for the screens.

“For us, it started with Baz’s creative brief. Baz and the Silent 44

House crew are really good at creating show outlines that give creative direction while also giving us room to run creatively. We’ve worked together for many other artists and have developed a pretty streamlined process. From Baz’s brief, we created custom designs for each song in the set, which then became the master document that we shared with Katy and the other creative team members.

It’s a very collaborative process between, Baz, and Katy, as well as choreographers Nick Florez and RJ Durell who are also creative directors in their own right. We’ve worked hard to develop good communication and short hand, all of which helps bind a big show with complex and diverse elements together. The tour also had us collaborating with our longtime friends Geodezik, with them doing three songs for the show. This time it was our turn to be the content lead and it was great having them involved,” stated Nicholson.

The show is divided into several acts such as Prismatic, Egypt, Catoure and Hyper Neon, each with its own theme. The show shifts gears so quickly, requiring nearly every technique known to man - cinematic live action,

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

Below: Automation’s Robert Moore; The 3D fly gag was run by Richard Kent; The Quantum team led by SFX crew Chief, Dan Ivory-Castile; The PRG Nocturne video crew who won the tour contract after providing triangular screen designs for Perry’s iTunes Festival appearance; The Prismatic tour delivered a huge special effects display, including 1,000 gags in 90 seconds for the star’s hit single, Firework.

cartoons, traditional motion graphics, crazy CGI - it gave the Lightborne team a chance to flex our muscles in every way possible.

“Audiences now are so used to having screens at big pop shows that it was important to the creative team to keep the audience on their toes idea and content-wise; everything was very intentional. What we strive to create is an integrated set of images that play nicely with every department,” he said.

“With this kind of show, we are very conscious to have the content timings be spot on with the music and complement the choreography and the lighting. Nick and RJ created amazing art with the dancers, and the last thing we wanted was to drown it out with the giant wall of video. There are moments of the show that are stunning to me because every element on screen and stage is working in perfect time.”

The design of the stage uses video (on the triangular hi-res mountain of pixels) as a giant backdrop. “One of the challenges we faced was designing and creating for such a large and hires surface. We used d3 Technologies Designer Software to pre-visualise content and check out our pixel maps within their fantastic simulator, as well as showing Katy how things would play in the room before we had access to the stage.

This was instrumental in getting quick and early feedback,” concluded Nicholson.

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STAGING TAIT supplied the scenic support for Katy Perry at the MTV Video Music Awards in August of 2013 and consequently won the touring contract. The design theme was set from the get-go. “Many of the elements required daily involvement, which she committed to early on in the process and remained steady all the way through,” explained Patrick Seeley, Project Manager at TAIT. “It’s a big show for an arena, so maintaining the logistics and flow of the in-and-outs was critical. This tour requires immense versatility, particularly in providing the rigging team with the tools necessary to re-work the 3D flying rig, 2D tracks, acrobatic single point and the curry flower, as each venue presents its own unique situation. The timeframe was also tight, with just few weeks from the time of contract to the deliverance of certain elements for the rehearsals in LA. TAIT then continued to build, test, install and rehearse new elements through the setup in Belfast.”

A large part of the set piece involved the treadmill style stage, which TAIT had manufactured before, but Seeley cites Perry’s as “by far our most refined version.” It features a two-direction drive, a self-centreing belt system and a support system that works with TAIT’s MagDeck system. The belt is made from monopolyester, made to specifications based on

research conducted by TAIT about 18-months ago, prior to this latest version. The stage also had a clever triangular video surface in the floor that folds closed into a pyramid and then opens outward, used as Katy’s entrance and exit from the show. The set travels in an incredible 17 trucks.

In the stage itself, the physical mechanical lift designs are similar to lifts that TAIT has done in the past. Said Seeley: “The lift and flippers all work off one pump and accumulator bank and the main lift is a two stage scissor lift. For this tour, the real challenge is that the geometry is very tight. The units have a series of interlocks and feedback devices to allow the individual parts to work alone or in conjunction with each other. TAIT’s Navigator Control System monitors them for safe operation.

“The virtue of the design provides Perry with the ability to really get out into the audience,” explained Seeley. “Baz’s direction to hide various effects within the stage itself, allows for spectacular moments without pulling focus during the entire show.”

TAIT use both Navigator and E-Cam (by Stage Technologies) control systems. What Navigator is doing on the show is essentially taking in information from E-Cam and the MA Lighting grandMA2 lighting desk and provides position information to both, for a much greater coordination between motion and

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

Below: Katy Perry’s ever-hospitable Production Manager, Jay Schmit with her Manager, Steve Jensen of Direct Management; Eat Your Hearts Out cooked up a storm thanks to Head Chef, Dan Leferve and his team; The rigging crew, headed up by Lead Rigger, Chuck Melton (front right).

lighting. “This gives the lighting programmer a more efficient programming method during tech rehearsals, saving hundreds of hours and making it possible for the lighting director to adjust venue-to-venue. The flight paths change in a matter of minutes instead of hours,” said Seeley. “This tour is all about those details.”

On the road, Luke Larson Head Carpenter oversees the daily stage build. Said Larson: “There is a lot of moving parts which makes for a very long day, and a big portion of it is the automation. Even when we get the structure itself built, we then spend a lot of time making sure the parts are all working safely before the performance. Time is very much of the essence.”

The carpentry team is completed by Mike Ryder, Jimmy George, Mikey Burger, Robert Moore, Michael Peddit, Aaron Ford and PJ Smith, a group of crew members who have worked together many times, ensuring that a smooth transition is felt within the department.

AUTOMATION With the rig safely in place, Head of Automation, Robert Moore is responsible for all the moving gear on stage. This involves everything from the initial unpacking of trucks, to setting it up and then operating and running the gags throughout the show.

Said Moore: “At the beginning of the show there is a hydraulic lift, which we call the ‘Lotus’.

Katy gets on underneath the stage and it gravitates up through the stage, revealing her to the crowd. There are a couple of toasters moving platforms elevating performers either 48

up or down or in the air - in the stage that Perry and some of the dancers will ride on whilst they are performing.“ In the air, there is a 3D fly system which two aerialists and two guitar players use. Upstage there is a tracking triangle and all the video walls move up and down the stage (as a main feature of the set deisgn, PRG Nocturne’s video wall weighs in at 40,000lbs!)

Richard Kent is the tour’s Automation Fly Supervisor for the 3D flying system. He told TPi: “Technology has moved on in automation to a lot more animation, so we actually animate things in this 3D space rather than the traditional automation side of things, so it’s slightly different learning 3D packages in terms of modeling, but it’s a new skill which enables us to achieve accuracy easily,” he said.

All of the automation is running on the TAIT’s Navigator software.

PYROTECHNICS Quantum Special Effects Corp. has taken lead for this tour, with assistance from Quantum Special Effects Ltd for the UK leg. Dan IvoryCastile, SFX Crew Chief is leading a team of three for this world wide pop spectacular.

Quantum is also working in conjunction with ER Productions. Said Ivory-Castile: “Our American counterpart has merged with ER’s for this tour, but are still separate companies; we’re hoping to provide a more comprehensive service globally by joining forces”.

Ivory-Castile is joined by Michael Morey and Ian McDonald and ER Productions has sent Alex

Oita on the road as the Prismatic Laser Tech.

Ivory-Castile explained some of the show’s special effects: “For the opening of the show we have 10 Co2 Jets, they pack a good punch right at the start of the show. I control the pyro from a wireless system at the side of the stage, or wherever I need to be able to see it from. Our confetti blowers are fired manually, and Co2 jets and low fog gags are all programmed via DMX on a Chamsys MQ70 desk. The pyro we initiate on Galaxis and is absolutely perfect for what we do.”

There is an array of special effects throughout the show. These include low fog from LSG’s with floor pockets that pop up - so there is no need for ducting on stage - adding to the edgy mood of song Walking on Air. Later in the show there are two flying guitarists which have pyrotechnics coming out of their guitars, all fired wirelessly for an explosive mid air moment!

Quantum then crank up the heat with eight G-Flames for the classic Perry hit I Kissed A Girl positioned upstage left and right of the prop lift, punching in at the guitar solo. Six confetti blowers fire custom music note and star shaped confetti for the penultimate song, Birthday filling the entire venue, ensuring everyone is feeling in the party mood before the night is over.

Yet the biggest effect for the pyrotechnics crew is the finale, Firework. The ending is certainly not for the faint-hearted; it entails the use of custom prism glasses and a few double glances! For this number, Quantum has enlisted

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

almost 1,000 products going off in roughly 90 seconds. Rigged from 13 points across the whole of the stage, Perry is framed in an explosive blow of colour, coordinating with her vibrant costume change for the song.

Quantum has been providing effects for the singers’ performances since her California Dreams tour in 2011. With performances including the Singapore Grand Prix, Dubai World Parachute Championships and more recently Quantum have joined Perry for her headlining show at the Hollywood Bowl, Capital’s Jingle Bell Ball as well as two X Factor performances.

LASERS Having also supplied many of Katy Perry’s TV performances in Europe over the years, ER Productions was successful in bidding for the laser supplier position. ER Productions’ Managing Director, Ryan Hagan said: “We are very proud to be part of this tour especially with the system we have put in place. Laser effects are no longer just seen to go overhead. Our technology has improved vastly and we are able to expose the audience with laser effects like never before.”

In total, ER Productions is using 15 21W RGB lasers. He continued: “These lasers are somewhat special as they use a lot of red.

In many laser projectors, the total wattage is bumped up by using more green but this doesn’t help with the colour balance of the laser. The laser looks were always going to be very colourful so it was very important to use high-powered balanced systems to get the best effect.

“Having worked with Baz on many other projects and Katy’s performance at the EMA’s it was clear from the beginning that the internal DMX diffraction grating options were going to be required. These effects are very important to the show. They highlight the Prism effect of light splitting white into RGB beams.”

These effects are also easily metred and ER Productions was able to expose audiences with safe levels of laser looks adding extra effect for the show. “We worked very hard on making sure that each look required had all of the safety mechanisms needed in place, so it was passed

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at each venue the tour went into on its UK leg,” added Hagan.

The set is triangular in form and the lasers positions mapped the outer edge of this creating the largest triangle of all. The lasers upstage were on the lighting shelves of the tracking video screen. ER Productions designed a system that one tech could tour, keeping cost to a minimum, but always achieving the results wanted.

Laser Tech, Alex Oita added: “All the departments are working together to make sure everything is matched perfectly; it all blends in very nicely, especially the most important laser song which is the set finale, Firework. This is the ‘Prism Vision’ moment of the tour. Where you can use 3D glasses, especially for this special effect. I think it’s a very impressive tour. There are a lot of things happening on the stage at any given time.”

Each laser has independent control, so ER Productions has provided Pangolin.net software to operate the lasers. Hagan continued: “We connected one of our 10 Pangolin racks with a four-way version, which then utilised two of our own ER E-STOP interfaces. This allowed us to use just the one E-Stop button at FOH for complete shutdown of the rig.”

The B stage gave a perfect surface for terminating all of the high laser positions. “With effects coming down as well as up, we were able to keep the triangular form with all the laser looks. Timecoded for perfection, the lasers accompanied Katy’s performance during three songs: This Moment, Love Me and Firework.”

Additionally, six Look Solutions Viperdelux smoke machines were utilised to create the show’s atmospherics. “These are great for touring; it’s a smoke machine and fan all in the one unit. It’s little things like this that help your guys load-in more efficiently so that they can spend more time on the show,” he concluded.

RIGGING Due to the ever-increasing weights of touring productions, the production team behind Prismatic made a request to Load Cell Rental to provide a weight monitoring service for the duration of the tour’s rehearsal time in Belfast.

Colin Luke from Load Cell Rental attended and provided an installation service on all points of the show. During the rehearsal period, any changes to the rig and the resulting changes in weight on those points could be analysed to ensure that safe working loads were not exceeded.

This meant at the end of the rehearsal period, all final weights could be documented meaning the accuracy of the weights are credible due to the fully documented calibration and servicing regime for every load cell owned

by Load Cell Rental.

Load Cell Rental also offers a weight report service which effectively removes the responsibility for ascertaining the show weights from both production and the artist. Load Cell Rental technicians work alongside the production team on load-in, installing a cell on every point. The show is weighed in its final configuration and a detailed weight report is then completed by the Load Cell Rental staff.

The cells are then removed at load-out.

Regarding safety with the utmost importance has been the backbone of this large production. Said Luke: “The weight reports can be forwarded to all future venues on the tour, and in the event of any incident, Load Cell Rental will stand alongside production to prove the accuracy of the show weights.”

Lead Rigger Chuck Melton has been in the business for over 25 years and stated that this is by far the biggest show he has worked on with its 130,000lbs spread over 150 rigging points.

With such a large production, you need a great team and Melton praised his, saying that he considers them to be “the best freelance riggers out there”. The rigging crew members are Ricky Biatto, Albert Pozzetti, Patrick Leonorad and Jake Harrelson.

Due to the size of the rig, the right tools need to be in place. As there is no rigging vendor as such, in the US Five Points Production Services supplied motors and in Europe lighting supplier Neg Earth has provided the rigging crew with Columbus McKinnon motors and steel truss. The pre-rig system was 50 one tonne CM Lodestars and 50 points of Roof Steel, with the main touring system comprising 110 one

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Katy Perry

Below: The lighting design by Creative Designer, Baz Halpin: Kathy Beer, Lighting Director and Eric Marchwinski, Lighting Programmer; Neg Earth supplied a MA Lighting grandMA2 desk for lighting control.

tonne CM Lodestars,12 0.5 tonne CM Lodestars and 130 points of Roof Steel.

To help lift and organise this mammoth rig, Melton also has 24 local riggers in each city; 18 in the roof and six on the ground. “It can be challenging, but rigging is straight forward; you just have to hit the right point. However, you can try and get creative to get the most height possible,” he said.

SAFTEY BARRIERS Prismatic is touring across the UK with 75-metres of Mojo Barriers’ patented aluminium stage barrier, configured to follow the layout of the singer’s v-shaped stage which has been designed to reflect her latest album’s title, Prism. The layout, designed by Mojo Barriers’ CAD specialists in cooperation with Perry’s production team, features a secondary barrier line within the ‘v’, used to create a custom ‘golden circle’ for fans to get up close and personal to the Roar singer.

Kevin Thorborn, General Manager of Mojo Barriers UK, commented: “Complex designs such as this often mean that venues don’t have the correct kit available to match the ambitious production values of the tour. Our extensive range of straight sections, corners and gates mean we can create flexible configurations to suit the required layout, without ever compromising on the stringent health and safety standards required. Another of our barrier system’s core features is that it allows for fast and efficient set up, vital for a tour of this complexity which needs to load in and out quickly.”

CATERING Eat Your Hearts Out worked on Perry’s California Dreams tour taking in the UK and European dates. Dan Lefevre, Head Chef, has personally been cooking for Perry since March 2011. He said: “On this tour, the scale has more than doubled; we are now catering for 200 people on show days, cooking three meals a day. We offer a balanced menu with five main courses choices including gluten free, vegetarian and vegan options across the board with a huge salad buffet and a wicked pudding selection.”

No pun intended, but having sampled Eat Your Hearts Out’s passion fruit cheesecake, it’s a ‘naughty’ dessert indeed... He continued: “On this tour we have a smoothie bar which is used more than on any other tour I have done in the last 25 years!

We get through a mountain of carrots, apples, beets and kale every day. We are trying to keep the food healthy, fresh and light for the tour’s dancers, band and crew. We also keep fried food to a minimum, using olive oil instead of butter wherever we can.”

Lefevre and his team had been working for 22 days straight when TPi met them at Birmingham’s LG Arena - since the production rehearsals began in Belfast. “We’re touring with 30 trucks and eight buses, squeezing this massive production into UK arenas. With a stage that spills half way across the arena floor, it is easily the biggest indoor show I have ever worked on, but I have an amazing catering team producing delicious and exciting food for the whole of Katy’s hard-working production team,” he concluded.

TRANSPORT Beat The Street has supplied buses to Katy Perry’s tours for a few years now, watching the pop star’s shows grow in size each time.

Joerg Philipp of Beat The Street said of the artist’s production: “They’re very loyal clients, they’re great people to work with too. This particular production is enormous but runs really smoothly.” Beat The Street provided two band buses and six crew buses for the UK and European legs of Prismatic. Transam supplied an incredible 30 trucks for the tour’s technical logistic duties.

Prismatic is certainly in a league of its own; a true embodiment of Katy Perry herself, from start to finish, the two-hour show draws the expectant crowds - which incidentally are as diverse as her wardrobe selection - and leaves an undeniably fun feeling in the air. It seems as though that’s exactly what Katy Perry wanted, after all, this is a full throttle production, aimed entirely at her loyal fans...

TPi Photos: Sarah Rushton-Read and Earlybird www.katyperry.com www.silent-house.com www.fivepointsproductionservices.com www.earlybirddesigninc.com www.taittowers.com, www.light-borne.com www.nocturneproductions.com www.negearth.com, www.upstaging.com http://clairglobal.com, www.soundmoves.com www.q-sfx.com, www.er-productions.com www.loadcellrental.com www.beatthestreetnet,www.transamtruck.com www.mojobarriers.com 51

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Elbow

ELBOW ELBOW’S SIXTH ALBUM THE TAKE OFF AND LANDING OF EVERYTHING IS THEIR FIRST UK NUMBER ONE. IN APRIL THE BAND SET OUT ON A UK ARENA TOUR TO SUPPORT THE NEW ALBUM, PRIOR TO SHOWS IN AMERICA, RUSSIA AND EUROPE. KEY SUPPLIERS FOR THE UK TOUR INCLUDED ALL ACCESS STAGING, LITE ALTERNATIVE, NEWSUBSTANCE, XL VIDEO, SKAN PA AND POPCORN CATERING. SIMON DUFF REPORTS FROM LONDON’S 02 ARENA ON HOW ELBOW HAVE MADE IT TO THE TOP. Elbow started rehearsals for the tour at their Blueprint Studio, Manchester, in mid January with a FOH and Monitor control package from SKAN PA, then went into two days rehearsals at Sheffield Arena prior to the start of the tour. For Mick Brown, Production Manager, whose other clients include The Flaming Lips, Radiohead and Atoms for Peace, it was his second arena tour with the band.

“The important thing on this tour was the delivery from concept to the actual show.

Working with Tom Piper Tour Manager, I believe we managed to squeeze into budget with help from all suppliers,” he said. “Perhaps the biggest difference from this tour was the H&S assessment from Jake Piper [of Piper Events Services] which led to all departments having to ‘sign off’ their work before doors opened. It certainly focuses your mind and hopefully will lead to better practices. To sum up the tour, words I have heard repeated by others “Great tour, great band, great crew, great fun!

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CREATIVE VISUAL DESIGNS Visual design was by Cate Carter, Elbow’s Creative Director since 2011. Commenting on working with them she said: “The band are five incredibly fun, easy going, down to earth, lovely people to work with and they are a lot of fun to design for. Their music is so dynamic; it gives me the most amazing palette where I can be really creative. It has got many natural highs and lows, and ups and downs and builds. So there is a lot of drama there in the first place and it is a lot of fun to light.”

For the Elbow 2011 arena tour Carter’s brief as Creative Director was to create an intimate feel in order to give the impression of shrinking the arena space, to bring the audience close to the band and retain a feel of their previous theatre shows. For the 2014 arena tour the band wanted a different feel and when Carter met with them in November last year during the recording of the new album, band and management decided on a brief based around a more stripped back feel, allowing an audience

to see more of the nuts and bolts of the band at work.

Carter added: “Deconstructed” and “industrial” were words that came up a lot, embracing the fact that these are really big rooms. Rather than just having the stage end as the primary focus, we wanted to open out the design, so we have two trusses and lighting running down the middle of the audience, as well as the main stage structures. We have used curves to open the stage out and it kind of encompasses the audience. The band wanted an asymmetrical stage set up and the LED screens at the back curve around on one side.

In total, six are used. Also we knew early on in the brief that there would be a string and brass section and that the five Elbow band members would want to be close to each other on stage, reflecting the way the play in the studio and they wanted the strings and brass to be over to one side.

Quite a lot of physical stage set stage left offsets the fact that musicians are stage right.

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Elbow

Opposite: NEWSUBSTANCE created 24 giant one-metre sphere bespoke industrial light fittings. Below: 198 tiles of XL Video’s MC-7T 7mm LED screen were used to display video content.

We have the LED screens on the back wall and LED flooring on the rise front and then all the way down the ramp to the B stage.

In total we used 198 tiles of XL Video’s MC-7T 7mm LED. We wanted to make people feel that what is happening on stage is extending into the room and also if you are sat on the top reaches of the arena, away from the stage, can see things on the floor screens that people standing on the floor can’t see.”

The main stage truss layout consisted of a mother grid supporting lighting and the six video screens, all rigged using a Kinesys automation systems to allow for continually changing sets throughout the show, three long curved strips, and three vertical strips. At the back of the stage a large wall for lighting comprised of Lite Alternative ladder drops, which acted as much as a set piece as that of lighting truss. Then behind that grey sharks tooth gauze enabled the audience to see the outline at the rear of the stage.

Lite Alternative’s rigging inventory included 16 Kinesys Elevation systems with Kinesys converted Liftket Hoists for Variable speed movement, a Kinesys PD-ES and Vector software. Jon Greaves, Director at Lite Alternative added: “We have been involved with Kinesys over the past two or three years. It’s getting more and more use on big events and productions and becoming integral to a lot of the shows. Especially for arenas and stadiums. Designers want to have more options and one of those is to keep the set moving for more

dynamism and new looks. We have happily invested in Kinesys.

It is very clever and very good. A lot of our staff and riggers have trained up and are operators. It’s a very responsible position. They are basically controlling a whole rig over a band. I did see the Elbow show myself and Cate has done a fabulous job. She is coming up with some great designs and really pushing things forward.”

Lighting fixtures included sixteen Harman Martin Professional Viper Spots, 12 Martin MAC III Spots, 22 MAC 2000 Wash XBs, eight MAC 2000 Wash XB Beams,10 Martin MAC TW1 Tungsten Washes, 40 Martin MAC 101 RGBs and six Philips Vari-Lite VL3500’s. Along with eight Clay Paky Sharpys, 24 Martin Atomic Strobes, eight Colour Kinetics ColorBlaze 72, 12 3kw Mole PAR (made by Lite Alternative), six Altman Scoops 161 and Chromlech Elidy-Big panels.

KEY LIGHTING A key part of the lighting design, placed on the two truss lighting set pieces running down the middle of the audience were 24 giant one-metre sphere bespoke industrial light fittings, also used as the surprise LED balloon end finale, designed by NEWSUBSTANCE, a UK based agency specialising in show design and bespoke performance structures. Mungo Denison, Projects Director at NEWSUBSTANCE commented: “These spheres contain motion sensor LEDs within them allowing for light change when knocked.

We were commissioned by the band to produce this as a special 53

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Elbow

Below: Live video was captured by a stream of Sony HCX-100, BRC300 and GNAT HD-SD cameras, supplied by XL Video; SKAN PA provided a full d&b audiotechnik J-Series PA.

element over the B stage.”

“We were delighted with the light spheres,” said Guy Garvey, Elbow’s lead singer. “We try and offer something surprising and this really delivered. As light units they captured the industrial raw feel we were looking for perfectly.

Up close they were quite imposing - giant, distressed shells that looked like they had been ripped from an East Berlin munitions factory!

The sphere drop was exactly what we hoped for as an engaging, playful finale and something the fans seemed to really embrace - even if I did take a battering at a couple of venues!”

Carter cuts her lighting mix on an MA Lighting grandMA full size console. She has been using for the desk for the past two years. “I started using it on the last Elbow tour and I find it incredibly powerful. I can just do so much with it. It’s very flexible and I now have it set up the way I like to work with it. It makes my day very quick, easy and I find it very reliable.”

Other key lighting staff included Kris Lundberg, Lighting Crew Chief, Rob Watson, Dimmers, Dave Jolly, Kinesys, Lars Kristiansen, Gareth Pritchard, Chris Wilkes and Moss Everhard,

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techs. Carter was keen to express her thanks to Lite Alternative. “Jon Greaves and his team have done another incredible job for us on this tour.

Their hard work and dedication is brilliant.”

Video Director for the tour was Blue Leach, whose recent work includes tours for Peter Gabriel and The Pet Shop Boys. Commenting on the Elbow tour he said: “Cate is a talent for sure and that was as great an opportunity as anything this time to work with her. The main thing these days is to be able to work as a creative triumvirate with Ben and Cate to come up with ideas for maximum and overall visual impact for Elbow and their audience. It is not a “video does this and lights do that” situation any longer. So we end up with a different look and feel for every song - as every song sounds and feels different so should the cameras, screens, colours, shapes, chases, total empathy for the poetry and flow. What a pleasure.” For control, XL Video supplied a Grass Valley Kayak HD PPU (10 camera Inputs) and the camera line up included four Sony HCX-100, three Sony BRC300 Robo Cams, and Five GNAT HD-SDI mini cameras. A Fibre Optica FOH network and

video package was positioned at FOH. Project Manager for XL Video was Phil Mercer. Ben Miles was the tour’s Media Server Programmer, using a Catalyst supplied by XL Video.

SOUND SPECTACULAR Mixing at FOH was Danny Evans whose previous clients include The Brand New Heavies, Graham Massey’s Toolshed and a lot of festival work, however for the past couple of years he has worked almost exclusively for Elbow, both live and in the recording studio. Evans engineered the new album, with sessions at Real World as well as at the bands own facility. Commenting on working with the band he said: “It’s great fun and gratifying to be working with a band who are not only old friends, but also allow me a lot of creative scope. They have always had a very strong vision for how a particular song should sound, and as they have taken control over the recording and mixing of their music, they understand themselves the importance of getting the arrangements and source sounds right. The songs are very dynamic from one song to another. So for example we don’t just

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Elbow

Below: Danny Evans, FOH Mix Engineer; Julien Helme, Monitor Engineer.

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have one drum kit sound throughout the set.

The drum sounds vary tremendously and I do a lot of work on that throughout the show. I have never been a fan of triggering drum samples so a lot of what we do is acoustic based to get the different sounds we need.”

Evans mixed the tour on an Avid Profile console, supplied by Skan PA, as was all the audio equipment. Lines from the stage totalled around 50 via a Passive Stage Box. Commenting on his approach to the mix he said: “Generally speaking I use scene recalls for fader positions, mutes and two or three different reverbs that I use. The desk is quick and easy to get around, it’s compatible with all the plug-ins that I like to use and obviously the way it integrates with Pro Tools is pretty seamless.”

Skan PA has been working with Elbow for a number of years and provided a full d&b audiotechnik J-Series PA system for the tour, a choice that Evans is entirely happy with: “Elbow’s material is at times extremely dynamic and some songs are very densely layered, but the ‘J’ always sounds composed and clean, like there’s bags of headroom to spare, and the clarity is just stunning whether at occasionally very high SPLs, or during the quieter moments of the set.” For the O2 Arena the system comprised of 16 d&b J8’s, four d&b J12’s, 10 d&b D12 amps, and one d&b J-BUMP for the main hang per side. Two flown sub-arrays behind the main-hangs each consisted of four d&b J-SUB, four d&b D12 amps and one d&b J-BUMP. Additionally, two side-hangs each consisted of 16 d&b J8, eight d&b D12 amps and one d&b J-BUMP. One pit array comprised 12 d&b J-SUB and 12 d&b D12 amps. A Skan PA drive rack included two Lake LM44 and a generic WinXP host computer running TuningCapture.

System Tech Ben Sliwinski has been out on a few Elbow tours in different roles. Evans highlighted: “His knowledge of d&b systems and the venues we’re visiting on this tour has been invaluable. He’s got great ears and took the time to find out what I want from the rig. It’s great to have the confidence that I can just focus on the mix and know that he’s listening all around the venue to ensure coverage and consistency in the tonality of the PA throughout the arena. We

also have Jay Summers, Craig Bruce and Richie Gough from Skan, they’re a great team.”

Monitor Engineer for Elbow is Julien Helme, who has worked with the band for a number of years. Evans continued: “His intimate knowledge of the music and the band’s particular monitoring preferences is priceless.” Using a DiGiCo SD10 Helme creates four stereo in-ear mixes, seven mono in ears, two tech mix sends as well as a Matrix talk back system for the techs allowing him to talk independently to the techs and vice versa. “It’s the first tour I have done with an SD10,” he said. I used an SD7 with Goldfrapp last year and really liked it. Initially for this tour I was looking to need 28 mix buses and I knew the SD10 would be able to handle that.”

For Guy Harvey’s vocal microphone Evans uses a Shure KSM9 and included on the drum kit are a trusty Electro Voice RE20 for the kick drum combined with a Yamaha SKRM-100SFV Sub Kick microphone. Beyerdynamic 201 for the snare top, Sennheiser 904 clips-ons for the second snare mic and toms, a Shure KSM 141 on high-hat and AKG 414’s included on the overheads. On guitar amps further Beyer Dynamic 201’s were the order for the day and for Strings Evans is a big fan of Accusound contact mics and for Brass DPA 4099’s.

SPECIALIST RIGGING Yose Lawson was the tour’s Head Rigger, instrumental in all the advance work with Carter’s design, working with the venues and taking care of safety for the locally provided riggers. Rigging vendor, Rigorous Technology - motion control rigging specialists - used five Kinesys LibraCELLs during rehearsals, 35 of which were used on the tour itself. A total of 10 of the LibraCELLs were networked with Lite Alternative’s Kinesys Vector software for live moves of the curved video screens during the show, the remaining 25 cells monitored loads, on the mother grid, upstage lighting wall, curved video screens and audience lighting trusses during the load in and load out.

Rigorous Technology also sent an abundance of Kinesys inventory on the road including its LibraSYSTEM Rack that has a LibraPRO, LibraSPLIT, LibraWATCH and LibraWIFI all built into a rack-mounted cabinet.

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Elbow

Below: Cate Carter, Elbow’s Creative Director; Ben Miles, Catalyst Media Server programmer; Lead Singer Guy Garvey was “delighted” with the light spheres adorning the stage.

Dave Jolly and Yose Lawson of Rigorous Technology worked on the tour. Clearly happy with the smooth-running of the show, Jolly commented on his Kinesys choice: “Elbow’s tour proved to be the perfect opportunity to realise the full potential of the Kinesys LibraCELL digital load cell system.”

STAGING All Access Staging was approached by Brown from a recommendation, and supplied two 20ft by 12ft rolling tech wings allowing the backline and monitor world to set up and then be rolled in place and one 40ft thrust to an eight ft by eight ft B stage. This 40ft section was covered by LED video product. In addition they supplied on-stage risers for the band and strings, a camera platform on the downstage edge of stage, FOH risers for lighting and camera operation platforms. All Access provided carpenter Ollie Rawles to look after all elements and make sure it was all assembled correctly, ensuring smooth transitions between All Access staging and house staging at all of the venues.

Matthew Bull, All Access Staging, Sales

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Manager commented: “On a tour with a great emphasis on Health and Safety, having a person from All Access on the tour made the sign off of these staging elements everyday easy for all involved. The video element needed some thought and we managed to attach the frames which held the video panels onto our deck so once the ramp and B stage had been assembled the video panels could be dropped in with the wiring also attached onto the deck for speed of installation.”

TOUR COMFORTS Popcorn provided catering for the tour with Steffy Head, Chief Chef working alongside Lincoln Jefferson Anis Darragi and Sam Tomblin. Production Manager Mick Brown told TPi: “I would like to thank all of the Popcorn crew on the Elbow tour. I knew how good Popcorn catering is from past tours, but I was genuinely gobsmacked by the quality of the food on the whole tour, the lamb in Cardiff was particularly outstanding!

All of you are a credit to catering in general but also to the touring industry as a whole.”

For transport needs, Fastway provided four tour busses for both crew and artists with trucking provided by Stardes, which supplied eight trucks for production logistics.

The last word for this homely and creative tour goes to Tour Manager, Tom Piper. He conlcuded proceesings with the sentiments: “On behalf of the band and myself, I would like to thank all of Elbow’s crew and suppliers for delivering a fantastic tour with a great attitude.

Let’s do it again soon!”

TPi Photos: Simon Duff and NEWSUBSTANCE www.elbow.co.uk www.allaccessinc.com www.brytedesign.co.uk www.lite-alternative.com www.newsubstance.co.uk www.xlvideo.tv http://rigorous-technology.co.uk www.popcorncatering.com www.skanpa.co.uk www.fastway.uk.com www.stardes.co.uk

PRODUCTION PROFILE: The 1975

THE 1975 LAST YEAR THE 1975 EXPLODED ONTO THE MUSIC SCENE WITH A POPALICIOUS, SYNTH INFUSED, INDIE SOUNDING DEBUT ALBUM THAT QUICKLY BAGGED THE BAND THE NO.1 SLOT. THAT SUCCESS HAS SEEN THE BAND SPEEDILY GRADUATE FROM PERFORMING IN 50 CAPACITY CLUBS AND PUBS TO SOLD-OUT GIGS AT BRIXTON ACADEMY. UNSURPRISINGLY THE BACKSTAGE TEAM BEHIND THE MANCHESTER-BORN GROUP HAVE HAD TO ADAPT QUICKLY. TPi CATCHES UP WITH THEM DURING THEIR ROYAL ALBERT HALL DEBUT . . .

Nominated for Tour Manager of the Year 2013 in the Live UK Music Business Awards, Production Manager Ant Forbes has been with The 1975 since the band first took to the open road. In fact, when The 1975 began touring Forbes was exactly one half of the original backstage touring operation, alongside Darren Purves, the bands Lighting Designer.

However back then job titles were somewhat irrelevant as, between them, the pair covered all aspects of production: from Tour Manager to guitar tech; Production Manager to FOH sound and monitors, lighting and stage design to even driving the bands tour bus!

The 1975’s rapid rise to success necessitated expansion of the team. Tom Fraser Nicol came on board as Tour Manager, which happily left Forbes to concentrate on what he really enjoys – production management.

Later on, Tobias Rylander of Seven Design 58

Works was employed as Creative Show Designer and Jamie McLuckie joined as FOH Engineer with associate Mick Eggett on monitors.

The schedule has taken the team to an eclectic range of venues from shopping centres in Manila to the Royal Albert Hall in London as Forbes explained: “18 months ago we embarked on the first headline tour for The 1975. We were doing tiny 50-capacity venues and now here we are at the RAH - amazing!”

The production team have been quick to adapt: “For the RAH we’ve got two packed trucks of gear,” said Forbes. “Last week in Manila we were renting backline and tiny PAs and prior to that we were riding high on three sold-out Brixton Academy shows - that can be a bit mind bending!”

The tour is clearly demanding: Forbes said the key to its success is to keep an organised mind and the support he gets from his team.

“I partition my mind; switch on the right bit at

the right time, otherwise I would lose track,” he explained. “Luckily for me Lighting Director Darren Purves and the sound team - Jamie McLuckie, FOH and Mick Eggett on Monitors, are totally brilliant.”

LIGHTING AND VIDEO As the venues that The 1975 played got bigger, the band re-evaluated its stage and lighting design. They found an ideal match with show designer Tobias Rylander of US show design collective Seven Design Works.

Quietly spoken and modest in nature, Rylander says he has never really considered himself a ‘Lighting Designer’ per se but simply another collaborative creative member of the bands that he works with. Ryalder’s career began in Sweden where he worked as a Lighting Tech for a rental operation and then as in-house LD at a venue called Kaffè 44 in Stockholm. Here he became friends with a

PRODUCTION PROFILE: The 1975

Opposite: The 1975 play synth-fused indie rock. Below: FOH Engineer, Jamie McLuckie used an Avid Profile desk for mixing; Tobias Rylander of Seven Design Works was employed as Creative Show Designer, and his work is heavily influenced by projection.

number of artists who subsequently invited him to tour with them. During this time he became fascinated by projection and video, which now forms the foundation of much of his work.

For The 1975 Rylander’s design is visually inspired by architecture. He says he enjoys working with glass and prisms and bouncing light from angled reflective surfaces. His design is certainly sculpted around his subject.

He says he has been inspired by the work of artist Anthony McCall, who famously overlaps film, sculpture, installation, drawing and performance: For the 1975 this influence is indeed striking.

Although the rig is modest, what Rylander does with it certainly isn’t. A mix of large-scale projection and aerial lighting effects, the look is monochromatic, architectural and there is real physicality to its structure.

When it comes to the video content Rylander says he has a clear vision for each song: “I plan out my ideas on paper through drawing. I then work with a design house, (in this case, Visual Bandits in Stockholm) to look at the best ways to realise it. I try to keep control over everything from staging / set design to video design.”

So how did an emerging band from

Manchester find a designer from Stockholm, living in LA? “The band has long-loved the work of prolific and award winning Lighting Designer LeRoy Bennett, in particular his work on Nine Inch Nails, Beyonce, Bruno Mars and Lady GaGa.” Last year Rylander joined forces with Bennett and his associate Cory Fitzgerald and together they formed the company Seven Design Works. Today all three are represented by respected LA based agent, Will Sharpe.

The 1975 frontman, Matt Healy, originally approached Bennett to design the show, however both Bennett and Sharpe felt Rylander would be a perfect match for the band’s aesthetic. “We had a meeting with the guys in LA and the design came into my mind almost immediately,” explained Rylander. “Matt loved Roy’s work on the Nine Inch Nails and so we tried to bring that feel into the show. The 1975 album artwork has a very distinct graphic identity. They wanted everything to be black and white. Their logo is a strict square and they use it everywhere. I just started out with five LED framed squares, which provide the backdrop for the band, and from there I began to layer the design on top and around them.”

The design is gritty, moody and hypnotic.

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: The 1975

Using only white light of varying colour temperatures, Rylander designs the dark as much as he does the light. Sharp geometric shapes are traced out from the LED square frames that form the backdrop to the band, which then morph into melting, almost dripping light, only to jolt back to fast moving solid lines and structures. Colour temperature and level of light are used extensively to further accentuate mood and atmosphere as each cue challenges visual perspective with aerial projections that burst out from behind the squares. At times, the light feels almost solid - touchable even.

Projection content comes from five 20K Panasonic on-stage projectors, which blast through the five LED framed rectangles.

Another two projectors are positioned at FOH and the band themselves become the projection surface. Projectors are supported by a floor package comprising a number of VariLite VL3500 Wash FXs and Clay Paky 800s.

“I’ve always liked Clay Paky Spot fixtures,” said Rylander. “I exclusively used the 700 HPE for a number of years as my spot fixture of choice. The new 800s are a perfect upgrade, without being too big. They have projection sharp optics and are fast and reliable. They also have a nice FX wheel. This being an ‘aerial projection’ based show means they are the ideal foil to the video and flown fixtures.”

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The challenge for Rylander is that this very precise show also has to be supremely scalable: “I designed the show for venues the size of Brixton Academy,” explained Rylander. “It’s scalability comes in the fact that the number of LED framed squares can be cut from the outside to the centre. The production can cut down to using three or even just one square frame and a projector, depending on the size of the venue.

For the Albert Hall, Rylander used all five and also added additional Clay Paky 800s and VariLite 3500 Wash FXs as a floor package. ”The VL3500FX is a really dynamic wash light, which I used exclusively for the touring design, they were the only moving light specified. I used the aerial projectors to do the work that a spot fixture would normally do. The FX fixtures actually delivered some excellent aerial effects and I worked them really hard at different intensities and at different zooms.

They complement the projections perfectly without “over shining” them in intensity, they’re very bright and very wide.”

Rylander said that the FX features and the ‘cat eye’ lens make them more interesting than a standard wash fixture. Said Rylander: “I got to know the VL3500FX last year. In fact I first used them on the Phoenix Bankrupt design.”

Touring LD Darren Purves works in close collaboration with Rylander. Purves takes care

of programming, and day-to-day operation, bringing together the power of a Green Hippo Hippotizer media server (supplied by Browns Blend) and triggered by an MA Lighting grandMA2 console. Lighting fixtures and control were supplied by VER. “Although I’ve worked for The 1975 for around 10 years, I toured professionally with a number of other acts for eight,” said Purves.

“Just before everything started happening for the band, they asked me to come on board full time! My role is to take care of the lighting and video and program in the in-house lighting rigs so they fit with Tobias’s highly stylised, minimalistic show design.”

In addition to the package of Philips Vari-Lite VL3500 Wash FXs, Purves is using strategically placed Solaris LED Flares, Sunstrips, the Panasonic projectors and blade frames as he explained: “We use whatever fixtures are available in the in-house rigs to complement our floor package. The VL 3500 FX’s are great for huge aerial effects as well as cross lighting the band. The flares are used both behind the band for strobe effects as well as foot lighting. They have really proved hugely versatile running in full channel mode and are being used as wash lights and strobes, sometimes even a mixture of both at once.”

To guarantee precision in delivery, Rylander

PRODUCTION PROFILE: The 1975

bought in old friends and colleagues Morgan Brown and Magnus Gronberg from Swedishbased operation, Browns Blend. Brown specialises in Hippotizers and video timecoding, and created and supplied a fully merged system comprising the grandMA2 and Hippotizer.

Timecoding, although a strong advantage for tours like this one, can be a time-consuming exercise to programme, as Brown explained: “The one and a half hour set meant that we had to record Timecode for 19 songs, with some additional extras, plus a number of effects. All in all the process took two long days.”

Both Brown and Gronberg are delighted with the Hippotizer / MA set up: “It’s a really stable system and has been running extremely well,” said Gronberg. “With the release of Hippotizer version 3.2 we can use the MA Net instead of ArtNet, which makes it fantastically fast. In fact, the network cards in the computer hardly does any work at all, yet content runs extremely smoothly. The cues in this show have to be bang on. With the Timecode we’ve been able to scrub the millisecond latency from button push to output out completely.”

The show is using anything up to 16 layers.

“We have two outputs on the stage Hypotizer and each outputs 3800 pixels, 40 by 720,” Gronberg explained. “That goes to matrix from which it distributes three signals then

distributed to the five projectors. Basically we’re sending out a lot of data, and we can run 16 layers without having any frame latency at all.

It’s fantastic to have this level of reliability.”

FOH AUDIO FOH Engineer Jamie McLuckie joined the tour in May last year when it first began to grow in size and scope. Designing a system with the bigger theatre-sized venues in mind McLuckie pulled in the resources from UK based rental house SSE Audio Group: “I’ve always used SSE, I’ve got a really good working relationship with them,” said McLuckie. “I’m also a big fan of L-Acoustics, so today I’ve got a K1 and KARA with me.”

Using an Avid Profile, McLuckie said: “I like to use the plug-ins. I’ve got a bit of a studio background so I find using an Avid Profile works well. Obviously I’m recording today’s show so it’s handy to be able to plug in Pro-tools HD and hit record.”

Nevertheless, McLuckie still carries an element of outboard: “Ideally I’d still use an analogue desk to mix this band,” he laughed.

“But for the sake of saving on cost and space digital has taken over. I use an Avalon 737 on Matty’s vocal, a distresser on the bass. I’ve then got a TC Electronics Rev 4000 reverb-unit.

The 1975 has a particularly atmospheric sort of sound as McLuckie discusses: “The mix has a

lot of reverb and delay added. It’s very much a band focused mix with the vocal lower in level than say for instance the level that a solo artist’s voice might have in relation to a band. Matty’s vocal is mixed in with the backing vocals, it’s more choral and gives the effect of a vocoder.

The 1975 is also keen that their live sound stays close to that of their album. “Live, they’re slightly more reverb-y than their recorded sound,” added McLuckie. “However saying that, if you play their album loud in a venue like the Royal Albert Hall, it does naturally bounce around!”

MONITORS Last to join The 1975 team was Mick Eggett, Monitor Engineer: “I started with the band at New Year when they supported the Pet Shop Boys at Edinburgh Hogmanay. I set up a show file on a MIDAS XL8 at the Edinburgh Liquid Rooms. I’d pre-set it so I could focus on Matty’s mix as I had been told the rest of the band were fairly easy going. From that experience I was asked to join up!”

By January Eggett was on tour: “We did three shows at Manchester Academy and three at Brixton. We’d had a couple of days rehearsals and I’d had a good chat with Matty about what he wanted for each song.”

However much like the changing venue

Reality Shows | Big Screen Feeds Congress Centres | Festivals | Events Concerts | Tours | Sport | News +44 (0)1590 622 440 www.bradeng.com

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: The 1975

Below: Frontman, Matt Healy with his Shure SM58 microphone; Production Manager, Ant Forbes; Creative Show Deisgner, Tobias Rylander; Touring LD, Darren Purves with Video Timecoder, Magnus Gronberg.

size, Eggett was to discover that Healy fluctuates when it comes to the desired mix for his in-ears: “Because Matty changes what he pitches to from song to song his monitors mix is constantly changing. The Midas Console is ideal in this situation because of the way I route stuff, I’ll mix him on the VCA groups and then it’s just really easy to access channels if anybody else asks for something it’s literally one button press!”

All four of the band members are using in-ear monitors, Ultimate Ears UE18’s although frontman Matt Healy and drummer George Daniel also use d&b audiotechnik M2 wedges alongside. The drums use an L-Acoustics DV subwoofer and a d&b audiotechnik M2 wedge in combination with his in-ears to fully feel his drumming. Similarly, Matt Healy enjoys using wedges so he can take out his in-ears, absorb the atmosphere and properly gauge the show’s vibe.

Although there is foldback onstage it doesn’t seem to be a particularly noisy environment: “We have an isolation cab for Adam’s guitar so now it’s a fairly quiet stage. Normally I would have side fills but there’s a sight-line issue with the side fills in the RAH.” As for the rest of the band, “Ross likes to hear a lot of bass 62

and takes a lot of sampler as well.

Adam takes a lot of guitar and keyboard, but doesn’t take very much of his vocals because he doesn’t like the bleed from the house in his in-ears,” he noted.

However it is Jamie who decides which microphones are used: “At the moment we use Shure’s SM58 for Matty, Adam and Ross and a Shure Beta 56 for George. Guitar microphones are standard Shure SM57’s and the drum microphones are a mixture of Shure and Sennheiser.”

The 1975 took to the packed to the ‘acoustic mushrooms’ Royal Albert Hall and made it their own.

Performing as part of the Hall’s hugely popular ‘Albert Sessions’ initiative, which enables artists who have not previously headlined at the venue to showcase their talent on the main stage, the Manchester-based band and its fans made themselves right at home. And to think they had been playing a shopping centre in Manila the week before - crazy!

TPi Photos: Sarah Rushton-Read http://the1975.com www.sseaudiogroup.com www.brownsblend.com http://sevendesignworks.com www.verrents.com

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Lionel Richie

LIONEL RICHIE’S UAE TAKEOVER LIVE PRODUCTION IN THE UAE IS CONTINUING TO GROW AT PACE AND HAVING BEEN INVITED TO LIONEL RICHIE’S PERFORMANCE IN DUBAI, TPi CAN SEE WHY. IN TRUE DUBAI FASHION, THE EMIRATE’S MEDIA CITY AMPITHEATRE APPEARED BIGGER, BETTER AND BRIGHTER... ALL NIGHT LONG. A music icon and international superstar, Lionel Richie’s career spans over 40 years, has seen him sell over 100 million albums worldwide, and win numerous awards including an Oscar, five Grammys, 16 American Music Awards, a Golden Globe, and five People’s Choice Awards, to name but a few. Performing at Dubai’s Media City Ampitheatre recently, Lionel proved there really is only one person capable of getting everyone dancing on the ceiling.

Technical services company eclipse Staging Services, which is based in Dubai, had a direct involvement with the All The Hits All Night Long gig from the very beginning - working closely alongside the show’s promoter DGT Events, advising them on how the show should be set up and so on, rather than just acting as a technical supplier.

Technical Production Manager for the show, Tom Ralston, was in constant contact with Lionel’s Touring Production Manager Tom 64

Hudak, Lighting Designer Debbi Fowler and Video Director, Kevin Williams two months before the show, ensuring all areas were being considered in detail, while all technical preproduction was handled by eclipse Staging Services weeks before, so that the touring crew could walk into a stage that was ready to go.

“This was one of the best and most enjoyable concerts that I have worked on in a long time,” said Ralston. “The fact we were in direct contact with the touring production staff and crew from such an early stage meant that every technical detail, no matter how small, could be discussed ahead of time so that there were no surprises for anyone on the day.

“When the touring production arrived on site we were in a position to simply hand over the stage to them; with all lighting, video and audio ready to go, nearly 24 hours earlier than they had expected. This meant that the touring crew were relaxed and could do what they do best - with ample time for re-programming

the lighting and video to suit the stage, so that everything was absolutely flawless for the show.

I hope there are many more concerts like this in Dubai in the near future.”

LIGHTING AND VIDEO Along with the stage rig, a main lighting consideration for eclipse Staging Services was to enhance the site lighting at the ampitheatre - VIP platforms, food and beverage areas, grandstands and so on. With Junder Luzon on site as Lighting Crew Chief, time and consideration was spent on the placement of 180 LED PARs, 20 Pulsar Lighting ChromaFloods; 10 Clay Paky Sharpys; four Clay Paky Sharpy Wash 330s; used to create an inviting environment, rather than just using white floodlights throughout the site.

On stage, as per Richie’s touring specifications, 28 Clay Paky Alpha Spot 1500 HPE moving heads were used, along with 25 Clay Paky Sharpy Wash 330 moving heads and

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Lionel Richie

Opposite: American musical icon, Lionel Richie, has sold over 100 million albums; Below: The light show on stage from FOH; eclipse supplied an MA Lighting grandMA2 Light desk and 9mm LED side screens for IMAG; Richie’s ‘All The Hits, All Night Long’ gig was a hit with the Dubai crowd.

10 Clay Paky Alpha Profile 1500 moving heads.

There were also 22 Harman Martin Professional MAC 2000 Wash moving heads and 16 Martin Professional Atomic 3000 DMX strobes, along with four Diffusion DF-50 haze machines. There were also 14 Thomas Engineering 8-Lite Molefay lighting fixtures, and five Gladiator follow spots.

Stage lighting control came from the touring LD’s Martin Professional M1 lighting desk. eclipse Staging Services also provided an MA Lighting grandMA2 Light console as a back-up

desk for the production. The lighting was run over eight universes of DMX via a fibre optic network, with cues fed via Timecode from the stage protools suite.

For video, overseen by eclipse Staging Services’ Lee Worthington, a 9mm LED screen was used - two IMAGS of six-metre by 3.6m each, and one back wall of 9mm LED at 12.6m by 6.6m wide, with a touring media server providing all video playback for the screens during Lionel’s set.

AUDIO Audio was taken care of by Delta Sound in the UAE - overseen by the company’s Al Woods and Andy Jackson, who worked together with DGT Events. Commenting, Jackson told TPi: “I personally think Lionel Richie was a great choice of artist, he was a true professional.”

The PA system of choice for the star was L-Acoustics’ K1 and KUDO system. “It is pretty much our standard Media City system that we usually supply, even though it was for a different

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Lionel Richie

Below: eclipse provided lighting and video to the concert, headed up by Martin Lubach (R); Delta Sound’s Andy Jackson with a DiGiCo SD9; DGT Events promoted the Dubai event, which was attended by industry press; A DiGiCO SD9 console was used for the support acts, whereas Lionel Richie’s sound team used Avid D-Show Profile consoles for live mixing; Al Laith provided Richie’s gig with full site staging and infrastructure.

client,” said Wood, Delta Sound’s Project Manager. “We had the same stage in the same position, although some changes were made.

We changed the out fills from V-dosc to KUDOs, which I have to say was interesting. The pros of doing this was that the KUDOs covered a larger area vertically than the V-dosc’s would have and the choice of angles are wider between the boxes.

Additionally, eight L-Acoustics 115XT HiQ stage monitors were used, along with one L-Acoustics DV-Sub subwoofer - powered by two L-Acoustics LA8 amplifiers and two L-Acoustics LA48 amplifiers, with one XTA DP226 controller for processing.

For control, two Avid D-Show Profile digital mixing consoles were used for FOH and monitor position, along with two Meyer Sound Galileo

“Al Laith prides itself on having the ability to safely deliver large-scale projects even under incredibly tight timescales...”

“While the system itself was pretty easy to set up as we’ve done it so many times, Lionel’s engineer changed the equalisation of the system quite dramatically to avoid feedback as Lionel has a somewhat expressive microphone technique.”

The L-Acoustics rig was made up of 24 K1 loudspeakers; six KARA loudspeakers, 16 SB28 subwoofers, 12 K1 subwoofer, and 24 KUDO loudspeakers all powered by 14 L-Acoustics LA-RAK, each made up of three LA8 amplifiers, with one XTA DP448 controller for processing.

66

(one 616 and one 6161 AES) loudspeaker management systems were running; a DiGiCo SD9 mixing desk was used for the support act.

Microphones used throughout the production were a combination of AKG, Senneheiser and Shure, with Richie using a Shure UR1 transmitter with SM58 capsule and Shure UR4D receiver for his vocal microphone specifically.

STAGING Al Laith was contracted to deliver the full site

infrastructure including grandstands, platforms, cabins and ablutions (of which there were 15) for the concert. Man-hours involved in building just over 18,000 m3 of scaffolding for the VIP platform and grandstand structures exceeded 6,555. The total weight of material used in the construction of all structures weighed in at 973 tonnes; a total of four km of fencing was used to secure and control the crowds in the ampitheatre.

Al Laith’s Warren Barlow, Head of Events Division, commented: “We were delighted to be engaged by DGT Events in providing the full site infrastructure of structures, cabins and ablutions for the concert. Al Laith prides itself on having the ability to safely deliver large-scale projects even under incredibly tight timescales. This is due to the investments we make in both our kit through developing techniques and systems, to the skills and expertise of our dedicated project managers, office and yard staff, and scaffold teams. DGT has proven to be a great team of people to work with and we will no doubt be seeing more of their events in the future.”

TPi http://lionelrichie.com www.eclipse.ae www.deltasound.ae www.allaith.com www.dgtevents.ae

CLOCKING OFF: Heath’s Hat Trick

WHEN NOT ENTERTAINING THE PRESS AT TRADESHOWS, OR TRAVELING THE WORLD FOR HIS BUSY JOB, HEAD OF EUROPE FOR ROLAND SYSTEMS GROUP, PETER HEATH, CAN USUALLY BE FOUND EITHER POUNDING THE STREETS IN TRAINING FOR HIS NEXT MARATHON, ON HIS BIKE, OR GIGGING FOR CHARITY. OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS, HE HAS RAISED THOUSANDS OF POUNDS FOR A WIDE VARIETY OF GOOD CAUSES, MANAGING TO COMBINE HIS PASSION FOR MUSIC WITH KEEPING FIT, ALL IN THE NAME OF FUND-RAISING. HE TELLS TPi ABOUT HIS OUT OF HOURS ACTIVITIES...

I became involved in raising money for Sobel House Hospice through my brother Bob, who as a music therapist, had worked there using music as a creative way of helping with bereavement. The patients there would write songs with the help of Bob. We would then put a band together and arrange the 68

material, book a theatre, sell tickets and perform the songs.

We’ve raised a lot of money doing this kind of event and will continue to do so for as long as we can. As well as promoting the benefits of music therapy, I get the opportunity to play music - which I love - so it makes the fund raising a real pleasure to do.

I’ve been running since I was 40 and picked up cycling again to do the ‘Three Men on a Bike’ events. Like many of us, a few years back at a certain age I felt that I needed a challenge and that I really should improve my fitness so, having competed in many 10K and half marathon events, I decided in 2009 to run the Rome Marathon as a way to raise more money for Sobel House. Having raised £1000 it really gave me the appetite to do more and more, so the next year I ran the Amsterdam marathon the week after completing the first ‘Three Men on a Bike’ event.

In the belief that I was fitter than I actually was, I took on the ‘Three Men on a Bike’

challenge with the other directors of Roland UK, cycling from Landsend to London back in 2010.

So in the space of a week I’d raised money for Sobel running the marathon and then money for the British Heart Foundation and Music for All using two wheels.

The second ‘Three Men on a Bike’ event was in 2012 cycling from John O’Groats to Landsend. That’s 926 miles over 10 days and every one of them etched into my backside!

This raised over £50,000 for Children in Need and Music for All - two charities which we, as Roland, feel are both important and relevant to us.

This year I am planning to run the Cricklade half marathon in aid of Prospect House Hospice where my father spent his last few weeks.

It’s something that I can do to say a personal thank you for the great work they did for my family. I strongly believe that if you can make a difference, then you should....

TPi http://threemenonabike.org www.musicforall.org.uk

IN PROFILE: Chainmaster

CHAINMASTER TURNS 20 ON 26 FEBRUARY 1994, A TWO-MAN ENTERPRISE FROM A SMALL TOWN IN FORMER EAST GERMANY WAS AWARDED A CERTIFICATE CONFIRMING THE SAFETY OF A DEVICE AS YET UNAVAILABLE EN MASSE IN THE LIVE EVENT INDUSTRY. THE COMPANY WAS CHAINMASTER AND THE DEVICE, OF COURSE, WAS THE VERY FIRST COMPUTER CONTROLLED CHAIN HOIST SYSTEM - THE VBG-70. CURRENTLY CELEBRATING ITS TWENTIETH ANNIVERSARY YEAR, PATRICK MCCUMISKEY WENT TO THE CHAINMASTER HEADQUARTERS IN EILENBURG OST, GERMANY, TO MEET WITH DIRECTOR OF SALES AND MARKETING, ALEXANDER HARTUNG. In just 20 years, ChainMaster has blossomed into one of the industries leading manufacturers of lifting equipment in the events and entertainment industry, offering an extensive product range for applications ranging from installation work to complex scene changes and even the complete automation of shows.

The son of ChainMaster founder and Managing Director, Frank-Rainer Hartung, I asked Alexander when he began working at ChainMaster: “Officially, I began working for ChainMaster back in 2000. I worked on and off since 1995 helping out while I was still in school. Initially I worked on the manufacturing 70

and assembly side, so I got to know the ChainMaster products inside and out. Since 2003 I’ve been responsible for the distribution side of proceedings, so I suppose my technical knowledge of our products has really helped.”

ChainMaster now produces roughly 7,000 hoists per year for the entertainment industry, and has managed to gain an exceptionally good market share in the field. An impressive feat, given that the company is still a family-run business. Hartung explained how ChainMaster developed from such humble beginnings: “My father became self employed in 1984, which was still during the time of the German Democratic Republic, and he had his own club

in Leipzig. After 1989 he founded a second company specialising in installing light, sound equipment and installations for night clubs and theatres around the Leipzig area. Then eventually my father became aware of the potential for the demand for a programmable chain hoist system.

“At that time there were already chain hoists available for theatre but they had a completely unattainable price level for the club and disco market. As a result we decided to develop an affordable programmable chain hoist.”

Development of the first product began in 1993. Frank-Rainer Hartung and a friend gathered all the information about the legal

IN PROFILE: Chainmaster

Opposite: ChainMaster chain hoists were temporarily installed for the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Azerbaijan. Below: Mid-training session, the international participants in the group attempted to reassemble chain hoists in ChainMaster’s purpose-built training room.

requirements that a programmable chain hoist would need to comply with, and then accordingly began to build what would become the VBG-70 Chain Hoist. The product was finalised and certified in time to be exhibited at 1994’s Prolight+Sound in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

“The first ChainMaster product - the VBG-70 - was heralded as a missing link, and we were able to take advantage of a gap in the market,” said Hartung.

He conceded: “But the real breakthrough for the company was to come in 1998 with the addition of our VarioLift chain hoist. The VarioLift was the product with which we achieved success internationally, especially with respect to the American market.

The product opened up a whole new range of possibilities for stage designers and theatre technicians because of the speed with which the set could be shifted. It was at least five or six years until our competitors created a product to match our 1998 VarioLift.”

It was around this time that ChainMaster was becoming known on the live touring circuit. Hartung continued: “In 1998-99 we kitted out the first tours for Metallica, Blink 182, Matchbox 20 and Madonna. With such big names using our products we were able to gain an advantage over our competitors. North America is an extremely difficult market for us to break into because of Columbus McKinnon’s American models.

Nevertheless, we continue to work hard in the American market” Hartung was, however, keen to stress the modest business philosophy of the company. “We don’t want to have a monopoly.

We see competition as extremely good for our industry. When other guys are coming up with great ideas, it’s important that they are encouraged to develop, so that we can learn from them.”

Since the success of the VarioLift, ChainMaster has gone on to release a string of highly successful chain hoists and software applications. While the ChainMaster products are often found on many big name events providing technical support on the touring circuit, there are many huge installations where

various ChainMaster products are employed. For example, two years ago ChainMaster were commissioned to install no less than 1,800 of its variable speed motors throughout seven halls at the Qatar National Convention Centre - the world’s largest installation in the entertainment industry. Closer to home, ChainMaster has recently built 32 of its VarioLift chain hoists and corresponding control systems for the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg.

FROM SOCHI WITH LOVE ChainMaster also played a key role in this years Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia. Four arenas including the Bolshoi Ice Dome and the Iceberg Skating Palace arenas - were equipped with 300 chain hoists with control systems for lighting, sound and video systems in the arenas. These included the BGV D8 Jumbo Lifts, the CM 880 series, and the CM 801 series.

“It was a pleasure for us to be involved with such a huge sporting event,” said Hartung.

“We’ve been working in Russia since 1998-1999. We worked with a Russian firm in 2003 on an installation for the official theatre in the Kremlin. One of the colleagues from the company we were working with (helping with translation and technical coordination) actually came to work for ChainMaster a year later.

With this connection we were then able to open a consulting office in Moscow specialising in theatre and arena installation. In the years which followed, this enabled us to gain a strong foothold in the Russian market - now at 7580% - a foothold which enabled ChainMaster to participate in Sochi.”

When I visited the ChainMaster headquarters, one of ChainMaster’s training sessions was in process, with customers from all around the world participating in the interactive seminars in the purpose built training wing of the complex.

“For us the training sessions fulfill several purposes. They provide our customers with the perfect opportunity to learn exactly how to use the machinery properly. And seeing as our products have become more and 71

IN PROFILE: Chainmaster

Below: The very first ChainMaster advertisement for the VBG-70 computer controlled chain hoist, launched in 1994; Training day participants repaired and assembled chain hoists; Alexander Hartung with a ChainMaster BGV-D8 1600 kg chain hoist; Each chain hoist undergoes rigerous in-house testing at ChainMaster’s factory prior to being shipped off.

more popular, it’s become a necessity to ensure that we provide such services.”

Hartung continued: “We also work closely with different schools in Germany, especially with those offering apprenticeships in the technical side of event production. We want to ensure that we can share our knowledge for future users of the product.”

German and English, and are also beginning to be introduced in other languages too, such as Russian. “Last week we had one of our very first Russian language training sessions,” said Hartung.

To celebrate its twenty years, ChainMaster’s plans are modest. Although the company are marking the occasion with a revamped

“We also work closely with different schools in Germany, especially with those offering apprenticeships in the technical side of event production...”

As the industry has grown exponentially in the last ten years, so have industry standards - a fact that Haartung is all too aware of: “When I started working at ChainMaster, I began with the eyes of a teenager, so to speak. Twenty years ago it was a relatively small industry in comparison to what it has become now, especially in the last 10 years. The tasks which individuals and technicians are expected to do have changed significantly. In the live touring environment, everything is so customised for each tour. So it’s important that everybody using our products have the same basis. With this in mind, we aim to educate.”

The training sessions are offered in both 72

website, a new catalogue and a new logo; the team aren’t planning on releasing any special commemorative products to celebrate its anniversary. “It’s not like in the car industry where a new model is released practically every year,“ laughed Hartung. “Chain hoists are made to be long lasting and durable, therefore the process is lengthier.”

Hartung continued: “Although there is no special product to commemorate 20 years of our company, it doesn’t mean that the ChainMaster products aren’t being continually improved upon, and the range of chain hoists expanded.”

As for future plans, ChainMaster continues

to develop products in accordance with new developments in technology. “In the past when we wanted to do an update for the MS Dos based operating system, we had to send discs all over the world - it was almost like the Stone Age! And now people expect that they will have everything through the Internet. So our research focus is now to concentrate on systems which can be controlled online, remotely. We will have some more developments with this very soon.”

Technically, there’s little doubt that ChainMaster contributes enormously to the industry with its array of robust products.

Perhaps even more importantly, ChainMaster is indispensible in its offering of educational training days in ensuring our industry reduces risk of serious injury. The process of having a European-wide consensus on the operation of chain hoists and other lifting equipment is, however, “a long and complicated one.” Hartung summarised: “Neither the manufacturers nor the users alone can draw up such a rulebook, so you have to have a mixed dialogue. That’s why ChainMaster are prepared to listen to our customers and to work together for the benefit of the health and safety of individuals and the industry at large.” Here’s to the next 20 years of innovation.

TPi www.chainmaster.de

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

13-15 SEPTEMBER 2014 THE NEC BIRMINGHAM

AUDIO AND LIGHTING TECHNOLOGY SHOW Launching in 2014, alongside the established BPM DJ show, PRO is a new exhibition focused on professional audio, lighting and video technology. The event will provide a showcase of the latest equipment, a programme of interesting and informative educational content, as well as a productive meeting place for industry professionals.

OUR PARTNERS

WHO IS PRO FOR? • Professional sound and lighting users • Late night venues • Production / rental companies • Event companies • Freelance technicians

WHAT WILL BE EXHIBITED AT PRO? • Audio systems • Lighting fixtures • Laser systems • Trussing and staging • Pyros and effects

www.visitpro.co.uk

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Total Solutions

TOTAL SOLUTIONS’ OV TRUSS PROVIDING BESPOKE DESIGNS AS WELL AS OFF-THE-SHELF PIECES, UK-BASED TOTAL SOLUTIONS GROUP IS A ONE-STOP-SHOP FOR TRUSSING, STAGING AND ROOFING EQUIPMENT. THE LATEST ADDITION TO ITS TRUSS RANGE, OV, BRINGS THE COMPANY’S DISTINCT TRUSS PRODUCTS TO A TOTAL OF SIX. TPi REPORTS ON THE NEW SIBLING...

Total Solutions Group already includes Total Fabrications, which specialises in bespoke trussing; Slick Trussing, the veteran of the range; T2, the awarding winning safety truss; a carbon fibre truss named New Wave, which is manufactured by US sister company, Total Structures and RSC Lightlock, a product range manufactured specifically for rigging moving lights.

Sitting alongside these five product brands is Total Training, a scheme that offers regular training courses organised by Total Solutions Group to educate attendees on how to use trussing and rigging equipment safely and efficiently. Despite the obvious success of the company, it reached a decision to reanalyse its lightweight truss range and the result was the creation of OV Truss. Sales Director, Ian Hall explained further: “A large proportion of our trusses stem from designs that were born 30 years ago, and although they were pioneering at the time, things move on. OV Truss was a way of re-examining all of our experience in designing, manufacturing and engineering a product that could be price competitive, structural innovative and easy to use.”

Dedicating more than 18 months to R&D for the OV Truss, Total Solutions Group had full confidence in the product when it launched 74

earlier this year. The company had considered many features to ensure the end result would be well received by respected riggers and companies in the UK, who would understand the philosophy and thinking behind the design.

OV Truss was designed to have the best possible strength to weight ratio using Eurocode specifications, be easy to configure and be aesthetically pleasing. “We took particular care about aesthetics. We wanted the truss to look and feel lightweight with perfectly flowing brace patterns no matter what modular section size is used. It can be a little tricky to engineer as much material out of the truss, whilst engineering as much load capacity into the truss,” continued Hall.

“OV Truss was our first product to be designed from scratch completely in line with the Eurocodes. They are a good thing and will only make products safer both by controlling design and manufacturing. The key is the link between the design calculations and the manufacturing processes to Euro norms and even though it feels like a daunting task, in the end it gives our customers assurance that they are getting high quality products which are regulated to the highest manufacturing standards.”

Versatility was another key feature of the

OV Truss design. It had to be robust enough for touring yet light enough to make it easy to handle. Rigging companies generally want to keep their inventory stock to a minimum to reduce costs so it was required to be flexible and be capable of a variety of configurations.

Currently available in just two sizes - the 30cm OV30 and the 40cm OV40 - but with an intention of implementing the same principles when the range is expanded in the future, Hall believes these products bring evolution to the industry. “OV Truss brings excellence in design, engineering and confidence of a product, backed up with good after sales at a pretty good price,” he said. It offers environmentally friendly benefits too, as it contains less aluminium than the average truss product.

In order to cater to a global audience, OV Truss is manufactured in South Africa - as well as in the UK - under license by Stage Audio Works.

“The great thing about this arrangement is that our product is supplied direct from the source for the African market with complete supervision from Total Solutions Group. Shipping can add a large cost onto any potential export sale, which makes this arrangement perfect. Stage Audio has been manufacturing Total Solutions Group products for several years, so manufacturing OV Truss was a simple expansion of existing

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Total Solutions

Opposite: Stage Audio Works has been manufacturing Total Solutions Group products for several years, so manufacturing OV Truss was a simple expansion. Below: OV Truss is used in a variety of events, proving its strong, adaptable features are a popular choice.

facilities.”

Since its launch, the OV Truss has been used on many projects including the creation of a Haunted House for DJ duo, Knife Party (as seen in TPi’s February issue). The Halloween set used OV for the whole structure, which was then disguised with scenic cladding.

A number of rental houses around the world have also added the new product to their range.

One of the largest production companies in Dubai, Protec - which acquired Aventeq back in 2012 - recently purchased over 300 metres of the new OV40 truss from Total Solutions Group.

Chris Bramwell, Director of Aventeq said: “We

did a lot of research into the OV Truss system and spoke to experienced people within the rigging and events industry. The feedback that came back was, ‘they have got this system right’.

It is a fantastic system, lightweight, strong, versatile and competitively priced. Without question we will take more of the OV system as our business grows.”

Fentura Productions are one of the largest stockists of Total Solutions Groups’ XO Truss in the world, with excess of 1,000 metres in stock.

A recent acquisition of the OV40 product range is an invaluable addition to Fenturas’ equipment stock. Fentura’s Lighting Designer and owner,

Tim Matthews said: “We needed a product to sit somewhere in between our XO and Maxibeam, so the 40cm OV looked like a good option.

Strength wise it was comparable with some other manufacturers 52cm trusses, but we can transport over twice as much metre-age in the same truck space with the OV. This makes a massive difference when large exhibition projects will often use several hundred metres at a time. The other huge benefit is using the same connector type as XO, so you only have one type of pin to suit both types.”

TPi www.trussing.com

Come visit us at ABTT Wednesday 11th & Thursday 12th June Stand No. 18

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MARKET FOCUS: Loudspeakers

LOUDSPEAKERS AD SYSTEMS

www.ad-systems.com

The AD-Systems STiUM is a compact, hornloaded loudspeaker system. Equipped with two 12-inch neodymium low-mid speakers and 1.4-inch compression driver it generates sound pressure levels in excess of 143dB with very low distortion. The STiUM reaches a very low roll-off at 85Hz and can be used together with the Touring Sub. Its nominal coverage pattern is 75° by 50°. With its passive crossover and impedance of six ohms, the powering of the Stium requires only one amplifier channel (and a second speaker can be connected parallel). The handling of the polyurea coated enclosure is easy due to the well placed handles on both sides. The available accessories round off the systems concept perfectly: the Quick-Rig flying bar is mounted within seconds and enables easy set up due to the optimally matched pivot point.

ADAMSON

www.adamsonsystems.com

The E12 is a three-way true line source cabinet. It incorporates two ND12-S Kevlar Neodymium woofers utilising Adamson’s Advanced Cone Architecture to handle the low frequency band. The mid-high band consists of a seven-inch Kevlar driver and a four-inch diaphragm NH4 compression driver mounted to the next generation of Adamson’s unique co-linear drive module. The critically optimised sound chamber produces a slightly curved wavefront with a nominal dispersion pattern of 110° by 8° (HxV). The modules efficiency allows for increased horizontal dispersion without sacrificing high frequency in the far field. The pairing of the E12 and companion E218 subwoofer is the optimal solution for touring and rental houses that need system flexibility, fast setup / teardown speeds and superior sonic performance.

ADLIB

www.adlib.co.uk

Adlib Audio’s new specialist division - Adlib Speakers - are proudly made in Liverpool, England. Hand-crafted and designed to perfection by a dedicated team of individuals, using quality components and precision engineering and innovation, the AA series is the ultimate ‘boutique’ brand for those to whom sound really matters. Adlib has been making, installing and utilizing the AA range successfully for the last 15 years, primarily for its own installations and projects. Features include robust build quality and fantastic sound.

Currently there are four AA products available for re-sale: the AA61, AA81 and AA121 - containing six, eight and 12-inch drivers respectively, complete with a dedicated AA12HL 12-inch sub.

ALCONS

www.alconsaudio.com

Alcons introduces its long anticipated LR24 pro-ribbon line-array. The LR24 is a three-way, larger-format line-array for even the largest sound reinforcement applications. Loaded with Alcons’ proprietary proribbon technology for mid and high frequencies, the LR24 offers an absolutely neutral, non-colouring and predictable linear response behaviour at any sound pressure level, with highest projection accuracy. The HF section features the purpose-designed RBN1402rsr pro-ribbon driver with 14-inch voice-coil and a peak power handling of 3000W. The MF-section features four high-efficiency Neodymium 6.5-inch midrange transducers in a symmetrical loaded configuration; the LF section consist of two long-excursion, reflexloaded 12-inch woofers with carbon-reinforced cones. The LR24 has a linear frequency response from 51Hz to 20,000Hz (-3dB). The horizontal dispersion of 80° is maintained down to 190Hz.

APG

www.apg.tm.fr

In 2010, French manufacturer APG launched its first pioneering modular line array system, the Uniline.

Composed by four different cabinet models, it can be configured to reach every FOH application, from short-throw to very long-throw applications, either indoors or outside: the UL210 long-throw loudspeaker, the downfill and mid throw version UL210D, the dedicated UL115B bass speaker and the UL118B subwoofer.

All line array applications are successfully covered by just one single system. Uniline offers adaptable turnkey solutions to rental companies and AV integrators, from handling major tours, corporate events, theaters and concert halls, TV studios, right down to small productions. The Global Uniline Solution comprises a complete set of tools and protocols backed by an international community of professional users.

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MARKET FOCUS: Loudspeakers

CERWIN-VEGA

www.cerwinvega.com

Cerwin-Vega’s P1500X two-way powered speaker (1500W) and P1800X powered subwoofer (2000W) create an ideal portable system. Although initially embraced by DJs for the twin attributes of clean sound and high power, also bands, ensembles, presenters, houses of worship, and solo artists enjoy it and find the superior reliability and three-input mixer equally compelling. The P1500X’s 15-inch woofer, high-frequency compression driver, wide dispersion, and daisy-chaining option allow coverage for most size venues, even without a subwoofer. For extra low-frequency coverage the P1800X’s 18-inch woofer adds the bass needed for a sound that’s cinematic in its intensity. In keeping with a design philosophy that emphasises clean power, the amplifiers use Class D amplification for minimum heat, lightweight, and high efficiency.

CITRONIC

citronic.avsl.com

Citronic has long been established as a recognised and respected brand in the DJ market. In recent years they have grown steadily away from their roots and now provide an increasing range of Pro Audio products at entry level, offering surprising value for money. A recent addition to its range is the CLA-1460 active line array. The CL-1460 medium-size line array for concert halls, night clubs and houses of worship, offers 900 + 560W rms. Each array comprises an active sub unit and a set of four full range active wide dispersion enclosures. The entire system can be tailored to the venue or application via a PC link, editing the internal DSP controller for crossover, filtering and gain characteristics.

CODA

www.codaaudio.com

The compact, high-output ViRAY system incorporates Coda’s DDP Dual Diaphragm Plannar-wave-driver for mid / high frequencies. Two eight-inch neodymium ultra-low distortion cone drivers deal with the low’s, all drivers are loaded to a common ViCOUPLER, allowing all to perform as a single source, without phase distortion. The smooth powerful frequency response is from 55Hz - 22kHz. User selectable horizontal coverage of 80° or 120° maximises system flexibility for both the high-end touring and fixed installation markets. The SCV-F Sensor controlled subwoofer compliments the system, allowing for both flown or stacked sub configurations, operating from 25Hz up. ViRAY systems are integrated with Coda’s RC Power / DSP management racks. The fast and accurate rigging system allows for hangs of up to 24 cabinets.

D&B AUDIOTECHNIK

www.dbaudio.com

The d&b audiotechnik ArrayCalc V7.6.14 simulation software is the planning tool for d&b audiotechnik loudspeaker systems; a comprehensive toolbox for electroacoustic design, performance prediction, alignment, safety parameters and rigging plots. The room input control, now called Venue, enables users to create a representation of audience areas in three dimensions. Since the world is round this includes typical listening planes, arenas, balconies and 360° scenarios, even with curved edges. The innovative arena measurement function builds a virtual model using dimensions determined with a distance and angle finder, meaning individual planes no longer need predefining in arena models. ArrayCalc forms the first stage of the d&b workflow, simulating both point and line source loudspeakers before the intuitive export function generates an R1 file for Remote control.

DAS AUDIO

www.dasaudio.com

The Aero 40A three-way powered line array system offers connectivity for remote monitoring and control.

The unique configuration of the Aero 40A advanced line array system (ALAS) incorporates a rear-loaded 12-inch transducer in a bass-horn configuration for low-end reproduction. The mid-range is handled by an eight-inch transducer developed specifically for the Aero 40A. High frequency reproduction relies on two D.A.S. M-75N neodymium compression drivers attached to a new BPS-2912 waveguide. Power for the Aero 40A is provided by an advanced electronics package that includes a new 4,000W peak amplifier, complex digital signal processing and connectivity for remote system management. The three channel, high efficiency Class D amplifier is equipped a comprehensive protection package for both the amplifier as well as the components.

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MARKET FOCUS: Loudspeakers

DYNACORD

www.dynacord.com

The loudspeaker cabinets of the Vertical Array series satisfy the highest standards in terms of acoustic performance and wide coverage patterns, operational safety and reliability. Meeting the requirements of a large number of mobile applications and fixed installations, the speaker family consists of three full-range vertical array speaker systems as well as four subwoofers. Exemplary is the VA 218 system, with its two TS 400 speakers and two PSD 218 subs. Suitable for audiences of up to 500 people, the key to the high sound quality is the optimal control over the dispersion pattern that the TS 400 provides. Vertically arranged woofers as array elements make a very high level of intelligibility possible - even in acoustically challenging surroundings.

ELECTRO-VOICE

www.electrovoice.com

With the ETX Powered Loudspeaker family, Electro-Voice presents the next generation of professional portable powered loudspeakers. A versatile high-end choice for live entertainment venues, rental companies, pro musicians and DJs, and installed sound, the ETX Powered Loudspeaker family includes six members: three two-way models - such as the 15-inch two-way powered loudspeaker ETX-15P - a three-way model and two subs - including the 18-inch DVX powered subwoofer ETX-18SP. Each low-profile, tour-grade wood enclosure includes a range of unique new features which combine intelligent technology and innovative industrial design for spectacular results. EV-engineered high-efficiency transducers and high-powered Class-D amplifiers, Signal Synchronised Transducers [SST] waveguide design and smart FIR-Drive DSP all work together to provide peerless sound quality and precise coverage at the highest SPLs.

EM ACOUSTICS

www.emacoustics.co.uk

HALO Compact, the system of choice for London’s Royal Albert Hall, redefines what is possible from a compact line array system. Smaller, lighter and more cost-effective, HALO Compact has also made vast advances in sonic performance compared to competing products. The fully passive HALO-C line array element delivers minute sonic detail at SPLs that belie its diminutive size through the use of its AMT high frequency drive unit and bespoke waveguide. The dedicated HALO-CS subwoofer extends system response down to 40Hz in a small footprint enclosure. It also provides a stable base for small groundstacked systems, negating the use of a flying grid. Applications for HALO Compact include small-to-medium theatres, houses of worship, conference and corporate A/V and small to medium scale live sound reinforcement.

FBT

fbtaudio.co.uk

MUSE is a true line array system encompassing advanced technology and refined Italian engineering from FBT that redefines the modern line array in terms of power, size, light weight, flexibility and ease of use. True modularity means that MUSE is ready for any application, from a small installation using two enclosures to a large outdoor concert deploying 16 speakers per hang. Each modular MUSE element comprises two 250mm (10-inch) custom-designed woofers with 64mm high excursion voice coils and two custom B&C Speakers HF compression drivers with 25mm (one-inch) throat. The waveguide, optimised via a series of simulations using BEM finite elements to eliminate distortion, boasts a horizontal dispersion of 90°. It has been designed to present an optimum load to the driver’s diaphragm at 800Hz, thereby allowing the propagation of an acoustic wave in the horizontal field up to 18kHz. The resulting enclosure can contend with even the most challenging of physical environments, delivering an ideal cylindrical source, while the acoustic configuration of the central horn offers a particularly linear and symmetric horizontal dispersion.

FOHHN AUDIO

www.fohhn.com

Fohhn Audio AG is the manufacturer of high quality loudspeaker systems and electronics designed for use in mobile sound applications and fixed installations. During its 20-year history, the Nürtingen-based company has developed a range of systems that combine innovative design, complex functionality and state-of-theart DSP, amplifier and remote technology with excellent sound quality, reliability and ease of use. Currently distributed in over 30 countries, Fohhn’s worldwide customer base includes Munich Airport, the Wester Kerk (Cathedral) in Amsterdam, the Kremlin Palace in Moscow and the German Pavilion, Swiss Pavilion and the Chinese State Grid Pavilion at Expo 2010 in Shanghai, China.

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MARKET FOCUS: Loudspeakers

FUNKTION-ONE

www.funktion-one.com

Funktion-One’s Resolution 4 is a three-way, mid-high, loudspeaker enclosure that is renowned for its excellent sound quality, low distortion and superbly optimised crossover points. The Res 4 is perfectly suited for use in medium sized applications, where it is typically deployed two wide for 80-90 degree overall dispersion and combined with Funktion-One F121 or F218 bass enclosures. It is available with different hardware options.

The Touring edition has inter-cabinet flying hardware built in to each enclosure. If the quick-fly system is not required, the simplified ‘R4E’ enclosure offers the same sonic performance at a lower price-point with a choice of neodymium or ceramic magnets and passive HF crossover. Funktion-One dedicated ground-stack kits enable both versions to be securely stacked and aimed.

HARBINGER

harbingerproaudio.com

Harbinger Pro Audio has announced the debut of the new VâRi Series of portable powered loudspeakers.

The new generation of Harbinger speakers is designed to deliver the ultimate in power, performance, and versatility, at an affordable price point. The new Harbinger VâRi line includes two distinct models to meet a wide range of users and applications, from bands and musical performance to DJs, Karaoke, and presentations. The V2115 is a 15-inch, two-way loudspeaker system that packs 600W of crystal clear power and punch, with high-performance Class D amplification and deep, solid bass response. The V2112 offers the same feature set in a 12-inch configuration for even greater portability and an even more affordable price.

Both units feature a host of new features, including an integrated three-channel mixer with auxiliary inputs and XLR balanced line outputs for integrating into larger setups, as well as a built-in limiter and two-band EQ for unparalleled control.

INSPIRED AUDIO

www.inspired-audio.co.uk

The ultra-compact Optima 5 vertical array module is a flexible and scalable audio solution, targeted at the Concert Touring, Corporate AV, House of Worship and Theatre markets. Combining a pair of five-inch cone drivers with a centrally mounted waveguide, Optima 5 has a minimum system configuration of two elements, which can be expanded up to a flown drop of 18 elements. Mounting options include pole mount, ground stack or flown array. Bass options for Optima 5 are the Optima B210 for predominately vocal applications and the reFlex B215 for live sound where greater low-end weight is required. Full system control comes from the eFlex Q5 system management, which offers full software control of system parameters via WIFI, Ethernet or USB.

JBL PROFESSIONAL

www.jblpro.com

Harman’s JBL Professional VTX V20 features the same advanced technology and performance of the groundbreaking VTX V25 in a smaller format, high power density three-way system complemented by a new suspension system that provides efficient transport, fast setup and precise configuration. All VTX V20 components have been specifically engineered to provide stable 110° horizontal coverage and effective line source array coupling in the vertical plane from 0-12.5° while delivering linear, transparent sound up to surprisingly high output levels for its diminutive size. A new small format version of the patented, legendary D2 Dual Diaphragm Dual Voice Coil High Frequency (HF) compression driver combined with JBL Professional’s new Ultra-Linear four-inch Mid Frequency (MF) and 10-inch Differential Drive Low Frequency (LF) transducers comprise V20’s three-way system design (2x LF, 4x MF, 3x HF).

K-ARRAY

www.k-array.com

The K-array Anakonda KAN200 is a truly revolutionary speaker module born to meet the needs of places where few had dared to go. It is designed to be a problem solver in situations where a traditional speaker box can’t be used. Its dedicated presets allow KAN200s to serve as a flexible PA system - either standalone or combined with K-array subwoofers. Its lightness and flexibility help it to be easily integrated in existing structures. Each KAN200 module is two-metres (6.6ft) long. Up to 32 modules can be interconnected, creating a continuous sound line, 64-metres (209,97 ft) in length. Integrated male and female speakon NL4 connectors hide all connections inside the body of the speaker, which creates an elegant, seamless line.

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MARKET FOCUS: Loudspeakers

L-ACOUSTICS

www.l-acoustics.com

With K2, L-Acoustics offers K1 performance in a rescaled package. The K2 system flexibility makes it suited to both permanent installation and touring applications, from theatre to stadium productions. The main system components are as follows: K2, full-range element, with Panflex horizontal steering, operating from 35 Hz to 20 kHz; K1-SB, low-frequency element, reinforcing LF contour down to 30 Hz or LF throw down to 35 Hz; SB28, low-frequency element, extending the operating bandwidth down to 25 Hz; LA4X / LA8 amplified controllers or LA-RAK, touring rack fitted with three LA8. The three-way quad amplified design, the transducers resources are among the characteristics giving K2 an exceptional ability to perform in many applications and with a record-breaking performance / weight ratio

LYNX PRO AUDIO

www.lynxproaudio.com

Designed for both portable and permanent installations, the ADP-215 is an extremely high power, twoway full range cabinet providing exceptional performance. For the low-mid frequencies it uses two 15-inch neodymium transducers with nomex cones and suspension. The high frequencies are looked after by a 1.4inch compression driver with titanium diaphragm, mounted on a 60º by 50º constant directivity, elliptical horn. The ADP-215 is powered with a total of 2000W of Class D amplification and is controlled by the latest generation of Digital Signal Processing with FIR Filters. This DSP, with 56bit internal processing and double dynamics optimises all the system components, providing maximum system efficiency and total protection whilst significantly and noticeably lowering distortion.

MACKIE

www.mackie.com

Mackie has announced an all-new, modern refresh of its industry mainstay portable loudspeakers - the new SRM450 and SRM350 high-definition portable powered loudspeakers. Featuring a powerful new 1000W amp platform, significantly upgraded sound quality and a host of easy-to-use digital sound-shaping tools, the new SRM450 and SRM350 deliver the unparalleled ease-of-use, professional sound quality and indestructible portability that made SRM a live sound legend. Mackie’s original SRM450 was the first active portable loudspeaker, and is still the most recognised speaker out there. SRM has always meant pro performance and sound quality that’s easy to use at an affordable price. The new SRM450 and SRM350 continue this legacy, offering improved power, sound quality and flexible tools perfect for any gig.

MARTIN AUDIO

www.martin-audio.com

Martin Audio’s ultra-compact MLA Mini brings revolutionary MLA cellular technology to an exceptionally wide range of small-medium scale portable and installed sound applications that require the ultimate in fidelity, consistency and control. With nine channels of DSP and Class D amplification housed in its companion MSX mini-sub power plant, the user specifies exactly what SPL and frequency response is required throughout the audience, and intelligent software controls each cell in the array to produce that result. Versatility and scalability are key attributes - up to 16 MLA Minis can be flown in an array and controlled from a laptop. In its simplest configuration, four MLA Minis can be pole-mounted above an MSX as a plug-and-play system using onboard presets without computer control.

MEYER SOUND

www.meyersound.com

The self-powered Meyer Sound LYON linear sound reinforcement system is the newest addition to the LEO Family of linear loudspeaker systems. Incorporating the technology of the LEO Family in a lighter and more compact package, LYON extends the advantages of linear self-powered systems to a broader range of venues and applications. LYON linear line array loudspeakers are available in two versions: the LYON-M main line array loudspeaker and the LYON-W wide-coverage line array loudspeaker. Complemented by the 1100LFC low-frequency control element and the Galileo Callisto loudspeaker management system, the LYON-M can anchor a powerful system for installations in arenas and large auditoriums, as well as tours and festivals.

The LYON-W can serve as down fills to augment a LYON-based system.

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MARKET FOCUS: Loudspeakers

MILTEC UK

www.miltec.org.uk

MilTec UK has been distributing professional audio equipment for nearly fifteen years and last year decided to design and build its own speakers here in the UK. This has improved both build and sound quality. The Blakite range was first shown at the PLASA Focus show in 2013 and has now been in production for nearly a year.

The birch ply cabinets are manufactured in the UK and are fitted with high quality drivers from well-known suppliers. The range consists of four mid / tops, four front loaded sub-bass cabinets and a compact stage wedge. The Blakite speakers are used for live music and conference work as well as installations.

NEXO

nexo-sa.com

Nexo’s new GEO M6 compact loudspeaker series is a versatile arrayable cabinet design that showcases the Nexo hallmarks of flexibility in use, high SPL output, and exceptional sonic clarity for speech and music reinforcement. At launch, the M6 Series is comprised of the GEO M620 full-range cabinet for stand-alone or line array application and the GEO M6B low and mid-frequency extension box. Both are made out of a lightweight polyurethane composite, available to order in any RAL colour designation. The system is completed by highly cost-effective amplification solutions. The GEO M6 reaches beyond Nexo’s traditional heartland of live music applications, towards the corporate AV sector and a wide range of fixed installation opportunities where speech reinforcement is the primary requirement

NEXT

www.next-proaudio.com

The LA122A line-array system joins the LA family and is the powered version of the popular LA122. It incorporates advanced neodymium speakers, custom made by B&C Speakers and a high performance DPA amplifier module, capable of generating 1650Wrms of high-definition power for a very high acoustic pressure for medium to large-scale applications. This system is ideal for use in permanent installations as well as in mobile systems. The new system comprises three models, two line array elements, with different coverage angles (8º by 90º and 15º by 120º) and a companion subwoofer system allowing great configuration versatility.

OUTLINE

www.outlinearray.com

Outline’s new GTO C-12 is derived from the larger-format, dual-15-inch GTO line-source system. GTO C-12 produces output power surpassed only by its larger sibling from an enclosure that is physically smaller and 30 % lighter. Incorporating its V-Power Concept and patented D.P.R.W.G. Wave Guide, combined with the most advanced transducer technology available, the GTO C-12 carries the familiar high-resolution signature sound synonymous with the Outline brand. The GTO C-12 contains dual high-power 12-inch LF drivers, four 6.5-inch midrange units and two three-inch throat-compression drivers. From arenas to 500-seat theaters, the GTO C-12 is equally at home delivering maximum thunder for a rock concert or providing crystal-clear sound for a spoken-word performance.

PEAVEY

www.peaveycommercialaudio.com

Peavey is well-known for its price based competitive advantage and have for a long time been associated with the lower end of the speaker enclosure market. Conversely, it has been its recent higher end enclosures that have captured most people’s attention. The company has reportedly invested heavily in ribbon driver technology in order to help differentiate it not only in price but in clarity and tone. Their Versarray enclosures take centre stage at ProLight+Sound each year on the Agora Stage and demonstrate what the companies 49 years of technology investment is capable of, but with such a legacy of serving the lower end of the market it will take some time for this sleeping giant to be taken seriously by some.

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MARKET FOCUS: Loudspeakers

PIONEER PRO AUDIO

www.pioneerproaudio.com

2013 saw Pioneer enter the pro audio market with the launch of its GS-WAVE Series club system and its XY Series professional installation speakers. Given Pioneer’s heritage in sound reproduction and its understanding of the club industry, this mission to deliver the ultimate nightclub sound system was a natural progression. Supported by Powersoft K-Series DSP amplifiers, the system comprises two series of passive speakers. The GS-WAVE system is a three-metre tall dancefloor stack with wide dispersion, while the more compact XY Series is designed for DJ booth monitoring and PA in smaller rooms. The two series combine to cater for the widest range of installations. There’s more to come; 2014 will see exciting additions to the Pioneer Professional Audio range.

PRESONUS

www.presonus.com

A unique coaxial design, 2,000W of power, and Active Integration networking and DSP give StudioLive AIseries active PA speakers studio-monitor accuracy on a huge scale. The series includes full-range systems with 12-inch, 15-inch, and dual eight-inch woofers and an 18-inch subwoofer. The heart of the full-range speakers is PreSonus’ proprietary CoActual design, which reproduces transients with great accuracy, resulting in better definition and intelligibility and less distortion at high SPLs. The speakers are phase and time-aligned to form a true four-way system when paired with the 1,000W subwoofer, resulting in tighter, punchier bass.

Free SL Room Control software for Mac, Windows, and iPad provides wireless setup, customisation controls, and performance monitoring - the equivalent of an outboard speaker processor and more.

QSC

www.qsc.com

QSC WL 3082 (WideLine-8) is a compact, high-performance, lightweight line array system ideal for a wide variety of high-impact applications including live performance and sports venues, nightclubs, concert halls and houses of worship. The WideLine-8 features high-power, dual eight-inch low frequency drivers coupled with a three-inch diaphragm compression driver housed on a patented multiple diffraction aperture waveguide offering an open, natural sound quality with a high acoustic output (133 dB SPL peak) and a 140° horizontal coverage pattern. An easy-to-use rigging system supports hanging arrays of up to 12 units with 10:1 design factor and the system can also be ground stacked for applications when a flown array is not possible. WideLine-8 is available in black or white finishes.

RENKUS-HEINZ

www.renkus-heinz.com

Renkus-Heinz IC Live is the intelligent evolution of the small-format line array, applying its innovative Iconyx Digitally Steerable Array technology to live event production. IC Live meets the needs of PA rental companies, with high output steerable array configurations and a versatile hardware system that is optimised for portable applications. Digital beam steering puts IC Live output where it belongs: on the audience, and way from walls and ceilings. Individual driver control means unsurpassed vertical pattern control - essential for delivering intelligible speech in reverberant spaces.

TANNOY

www.tannoy.com

VX represents a major step forward from Tannoy’s renowned V Series, which itself defined new standards in loudspeaker design when introduced to the market back in 2002. With the VX Series, Tannoy pushes loudspeaker technology even further, setting new benchmarks in versatility and acoustic excellence. With an expanded range of enclosures and transducer compliments, the new VX Series combines next-generation Dual Concentric driver technology with smart, ergonomic, portable and install-friendly new cabinet designs, enhanced build quality, and carefully thought-out functionality. VX Series gives installers, systems designers and engineers that critical advantage. All models are finished in highly durable scuff-resistant paint - available in black and white as standard, with matching grille assembly and mounting hardware.

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MARKET FOCUS: Loudspeakers

TRACTION SOUND

www.tractionsound.com

Traction Sound’s SDS12i Kodiak features its proprietary SDS (Soft Dome Source) horn that received a PLASA Innovation Award nomination. Bypassing the need to use compression drivers (and the inherent distortion they produce), the SDS Horn is the industry leader on low distortion high frequency delivery. The multiplicity of soft domes uses a horn and wave guides to create a line array in a box, enabling the soft domes to deliver exceptional clarity, balance and control at high SPLs. Very little acoustic energy is directed at the ceiling and the floor so the sound is focussed where it should be - on the listener. Install and portable speakers are available, with a six-inch and eight-inch model also utilising the SDS Horn.

TURBOSOUND

www.turbosound.com

The Turbosound Flashline Mini TFS-550 is a compact, full range line array system designed for medium scale touring and fixed install applications. It comprises a dual 6.5-inch three-way mid / high with combined Polyhorn and Dendritic waveguides designed to give uniformly flat phase response over 110° horizontal dispersion, combined with a 12-inch reflex loaded flown bass cabinet. The three-way design provides improvements in pattern control, power handling, and transient response over two-way designs, making the TFS-550H line array ideally suited to high performance indoor and outdoor sound reinforcement activities from a space saving, lightweight package. Touring and install flybars facilitate flying and stacking using the rigging hardware integrated into the composite moulded enclosure, and transport cases are available for both cabinet types.

VUE AUDIOTECHNIK

www.vueaudio.com

Vue Audiotechnik’s al-4 subcompact line-array system utilises advanced technologies to extract unparalleled performance from an ultra-compact and scalable design. Featuring cutting-edge beryllium compression drivers, Kevlar / Neo mid frequency transducers, and precision amplification and DSP, the al-4 system brings pristine sound quality and coveted line array performance to more applications than ever before. The al-4 system is made up of the al-4 acoustic element and the rack mount V4 Systems Engine, which provides amplification, DSP and network control. For extended low frequency, VUE’s optional al-4-sb is a flyable, dual 15-inch isobaric subwoofer designed specifically for the al-4 line array. Integrated rigging and optional fly hardware allow the al-4-sb to be flown above or behind al-4 acoustic elements, or as a stand-alone flown LF system.

VOID

www.voidaudio.com

The radical design of the Void Nexus 6 is born from a moulded fiberglass / Kevlar composite shell, which gives the enclosure maximum structural rigidity with minimum resonance. Virtual Arc technology provides the 20 drivers inside with a common acoustic feed point, enabling total summation of their output. This results in wide, even coverage of the audience. In short: everyone hears the same thing. Combined with Void’s legendary Stasys X-Air subwoofers, the sound has been described as ‘hi-fi for the dance floor’, though it lends itself equally well to live music applications. The Nexus 6 has recently been installed to great acclaim in two contrasting London clubs: Mode in Notting Hill and Studio 338 in Greenwich.

WORKPRO

www.work.es

The WORKPRO UDA 16 represents an improvement in the simplification of installations with controlled sound since it allows, passively, to control that the bandwidth of the audio beam remains constant. Thus the directivity in high frequencies is the same than in low frequencies, which implies a lot of advantages such as the reduction of the unwanted reflections in reverberant conditions, a great coverage thanks to the loss of just three dB each time the space doubles (true line array) and a perfect intelligibility because the beam is the same in all the bandwidth. Beside, its elegant and compact design easily blends in with the decor of almost any installation. Nevertheless, its frequency response and lightness make UDA 16 suitable for portable audio systems.

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THE BIGGER PICTURE

THE PSA BUSINESS SUPPORT HELPLINE IS KINDLY SPONSORED BY

THE BIGGER PICTURE

CHANGING LIVES, DELIVERING SKILLS. If there were such a thing as a universal list of things that made sense, then I think the meeting I had with Paul Byrne from Entertainment Workshops at PLASA Focus Leeds would have flown into the top spot. Here’s why: Entertainment Workshops delivers an alternative education stream for young people, some of whom, for a variety of reasons, struggle in mainstream education.

It operates as a charity and teaches young people skills such as sound engineering, lighting design, video production, photography and other forms of creative media.

Yes, it’s a worthy cause and a well thought out venture so I got in on a personal level, but my PSA head could not ignore the positive impacts for our industry. People who are keen and know what they’re doing are really hard to come by; catching people when they’re young is even better; but somebody who can walk into a warehouse and hit the ground running? That’s a rare thing indeed. And what they’re doing at EW, giving young people the foundations of our industry, is key to having the right people in the future.

WHO ARE THEY AND WHAT ARE THEY DOING? In 2008, Entertainment Workshops started running DJ skills workshops for young people in youth clubs and centres and the courses really struck a nerve - because as with all young people they love getting hands-on with real equipment, getting involved and creating things. Spurred on by success, they moved on to develop courses, such as basic stage operations, lighting skills etc, working closely with local schools to convince those education facilities that they at EW, the “alternative” teachers, could ignite a light of learning passion in some of the most challenging students, where others had failed.

Paul Byrne, a key player in the charity, explains what they set out to achieve: “We could see our training was really getting through to some of the young people who obviously 86

didn’t work as hard at school. At the same time, we knew we weren’t a school ourselves, but we worked with local education for about two and a half years, saying ‘this is so practical and so beneficial and there is an educational side to it as well. We need to be developing this so it becomes main stream’.”

The Entertainment Workshops facility is now spread across 7000 square feet of unit space set in Rye Harbour on the Sussex coast. They’ve built this venture quite literally from the ground up - building the rooms as the need has grown first in one unit, now across two.

Eighty pupils of secondary school age from the Hastings and Rother area attend the workshops throughout the week. They come to explore the world of creative media and nationally accredited qualifications (BTECs and Arts Awards) are delivered within this framework.

The teaching side is a non-profit charity, and this is partially funded by EW Production Services Ltd, that in Byrne’s words: “exists for just one reason and that is to keep the doors of the training facility open to further help generations of young people to find a groove to slot into when they can’t get on in mainstream education - to give them an education in the technology of production.”

The company pitches for work like any other, but the money goes directly to the charity and uniquely uses every opportunity as real life work experience for the students. Recently, for example, EW Production Service Ltd won a contract with Hastings-based, Penn Elcom, for the students of Entertainment Workshops to provide a catalogue of product functionality videos accessible to customers via QR codes attached to the products themselves, and via the product web pages.

Penn Elcom manufacture quality flight case hardware, speaker cabinet hardware and 19-

inch racking solutions, alongside sibling brands, Pro Audio Stash and CLD Distribution, and general manager, Rob Platt, describes it as a ‘no-brainer’ for them.

“The cataloguing is a big undertaking and something we’d probably have otherwise carried out in-house - though maybe with less professional results, so it’s a relief to be working with Entertainment Workshops for its completion.”

SOMETHING OF REAL VALUE Entertainment Workshops is offering something of real value. The schools know it: In June 2013, Hastings Academy tweeted, ‘Thanks to @EW RYE, outstanding value for money achieved through alternative provision at Hastings Academy” WHAT WOULD YOU BE DOING AND WHAT CAN YOU DO? The work Entertainment Workshops is doing for young people and the great service it’s doing for the industry, ticks boxes on every level all across the board. Through this charity the industry can really give something to young people, and that something is an opportunity that no one else has given them.

Education sometimes fails people. People don’t fail in education. Some young people do just want to be a mechanic but there’s no qualification for that at school. Young people can’t always see the big picture. Some young people can’t even see as far as the finishing tape of GCSEs. For a large number of young people, the fact that school should prepare them for life in adult work is a hard concept to grasp, but learning the works skills of a trade is not an alien concept and makes better sense to them. Young people have to do something to prepare for life beyond school age.

www.psa.org.uk

A BIGGER ROLE FOR APPRENTICESHIPS The point Entertainment Workshops is bringing into sharp focus for us, is that there’s a place for everybody. Apprenticeships are gaining deserved popularity again, because it is recognised that not everybody needs to go to university. That’s true of many jobs in this industry. You have to be sharp and you need to work hard, but you don’t need a degree.

This business on the face of it can also look very glamorous but as we all understand, you’re unlikely to be hanging out or even working with bands on day one. Some degree of training gives a realistic look at the work itself and manages expectations from an early age and prevents disappointment.

Every big rental company will tell you that new faces in the warehouse don’t immediately get to play with half a million quid’s-worth of equipment. But that’s not doing them a disservice. A young person with an understanding of the industry and the equipment, with a work ethic that knows flight cases need to be cleaned is a very precious resource, a future asset.

WE MUST INVEST IN PEOPLE FOR THE FUTURE You can buy as much equipment as you want, the government will even give you a 20 per cent deposit towards a loan to buy it - as long as you guarantee that that will go towards creating a

job.

Buying kit and borrowing money: that’s the easy bit. A person to fix it when it’s broken, a person to polish it when it’s dirty, and a person to operate it so that it can actually function?

That is a much harder call and that’s where we lack. You can’t just buy those, you have to invest in them, we have to invest in them, as a sector.

Why not give a young person a leg up in the process?

In other areas, investment is ongoing and no manufacturer would survive without it. It’s simply about investment in the future. Every manufacturer already has an R&D department where every part of future products is being dreamed up and developed.

People though, are the most valuable tool and resource we have. We need investment in them so the industry can evolve. So this part is down to you - and it’s always been down to the businesses to look towards the future for their people and to support initiatives for staffing.

This is how Paul Byrne described EW to me: “The students just love being here. They love the fact we have green screens and we can put whatever they want on to there. They’ve made short films in a day and they’re so full of potential - so inspiring in terms of the ideas that are generated.

“It all boosts their confidence, they’re proud of what they’ve achieved. And that’s really important because here we have a lot

of students who aren’t all naturally academic.

Some of our teaching covers basic life skills including reading and writing as well as tools for dealing with difficult home life issues from dyslexia right through to child protection situations.

“We work here to bring their aspiration levels up, they all have a ‘ping’ moment where they think, ‘I can do this’. The foundation of our teaching style is to give the students time and space to develop and grow, that way you end up with the best results.

So what can you do to help? Whether it is financial, of equipment, a training session on your equipment - or even a back stage view of a production that uses your equipment? Think about how you could inspire them and I’m sure they’ll think of ways to inspire you further down the line.

So, what’s happening at Entertainment Workshops: young people being trained and working on the job in parallel. Add the social benefits, the opportunities given to young people….this one deserves to grow.

TPi www.psa.org.uk

87

MOVERS & SHAKERS Sponsored by www.interfacio.com • +44 208 986 5002

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Avolites and Avolites Media have appointed Fairlight as its sole distributor for The Netherlands. Koy Neminathan, Sales Director for Avolites is delighted in confirming the new deal: “I am very excited about working with Fairlight on an exclusive basis. We will now attain the resources necessary to promote our range of lighting and video control on a larger scale. Our relationship goes back well over 20 years and the foundations we have built allow us to hit the ground running.

“We have arranged dates for seminars, workshops and a comprehensive marketing campaign to expose the Titan and Ai platforms to the Dutch market. We’re all very enthusiastic regarding the further integration of the powerful Avolites Titan software and the Ai video control platform.”

Clay Paky has announced a partnership with Asimetrik Sound, Light and Display Systems.

The Turkish company, which specialises in the marketing and installation of technology and systems for show, corporate and architectural environments, said it was delighted to forge a partnership that involves marketing and providing technical assistance for all Clay Paky products.

Asimetrik is based in Ankara and Istanbul and can count on a close network of partners throughout Turkey, with branches in Antalya and Izmir. Alberico D’Amato, Clay Paky’s Sales Manager, said: “Asimetrik is a solid and dynamic company with a strong presence throughout the country, and we are sure it will be able to promote our products better on a highly interesting continuously expanding market.”

Clay Paky’s products have always been highly present in Turkey, also thanks to the excellent work carried out with leading rental companies. It is enough to remember the 2013 Mediterranean Games, with over 400 Clay Paky lights, and the Turkvision Song Contest this year.

Clay Paky lights also illuminate some of the most 88

prestigious clubs in Turkey, such as the Halikarnas in Bodrum and the Billionaire in Istanbul.

The drpgroup has added another member to its ever-growing team. Kate Stone has joined drpgroup as a Project Manager and will work as part of the project management team. Stone brings to the team her wealth of experience in events, having worked at Awesome Events for six years. She has established and forged long lasting relationships with many suppliers in the industry.

Stone commented: “So far I’m embracing the drp culture and values, from watching the drpgroup over the years grow and expand, it felt like a perfect fit that this would be the next step for me in my career. The events industry gives me a real buzz, and I’m very grateful to be a part of the team and take on the first of many projects.”

EAW has named industry veteran Ken Dewar as its new EMEA Sales Director. The announcement was made by EAW Vice President of Sales, Rusty Waite: “Ken’s professionalism and passion for the pro audio industry stood out right from our first encounter and was one of the reasons we decided to bring him on board. He’s already hit the ground running. Together with our solid sales, support and design team, Ken is sure to go the extra mile for our customers and partners across the region.”

Elation Europe has strengthened its European team with three new hires - Frans Schilte, Patrick Strunk and Ute Kerkow at Elation’s European headquarter building in Kerkrade, The Netherlands. Frans Schilte joins Elation’s in-house sales department with the primary responsibility of reinforcing and supporting Elation’s European sales effort.

Patrick Strunk comes to Elation’s marketing department from the ADJ Group, where he’s worked in marketing since 2011. In his new position at Elation, he handles a number of general marketing duties such as catalogue and advertisement creation, web page maintenance,

product photography and social media.

Ute Kerkow will be assisting with a variety of office duties at Elation’s European headquarters.

She has worked freelance for many years and comes to Elation with previous experience in inhouse sales from the cabinet/wardrobe industry.

L-Acoustics has announced the appointment of long-serving industry professional Alvin Koh as Applications Engineer for Asia, reinforcing L-Acoustics’ growth and commitment to its customer base throughout the Asian region. Koh will be based in Kuala Lumpur and will provide technical support to L-Acoustics customers through the company’s existing regional distribution network.

Speaking of his appointment, Koh commented: “As a sound expert in this field, I have been a fan of the L-Acoustics systems for years, so I am thrilled to be joining the company.

Their commitment to the Asian market is indisputable, and I am looking forward to further strengthening the brand in this region.”

Leisuretec has been appointed as the premier stockist for the RCF Media Series. According to Leisuretec Managing Director, Cliff Dounting, discussions with the Italian manufacturer to add the versatile Media Series to the portfolio had begun at the beginning of the year.

“There has been a long standing relationship between Leisuretec Distribution and RCF UK’s Phil Price that stretches back more than 20 years - and that was a great foundation to build upon.

“RCF has a strong brand name in the industry synonymous with high quality and excellent value for money, both of which we at Leisuretec regard very highly. We see this as a great opportunity to go confidently to the trade and promote these qualities to our clients.”

Le Maitre has announced that it has hired Bruce Baum as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Office. Most recently, Baum was the Chief Financial Officer of Pyrotek Special Effects, a leader in providing special effects for concert

www.interfacio.com • +44 208 986 5002

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Opposite: Avolites and Avolites media have appointed Fairlight as its sole distributor for the Netherlands; drpgroup has appointed Kate Stone as Project Manager; EAW has named industry veteran Ken Dewar as its new EMEA Sales Director. Below: Mark Cunningham’s media and marketing agency, Liveculture Group, is up and running with premier clients that include Stageco Staging Group and major local crew supplier, Showstars.

touring, live performances, television award shows and special events. Previously, Baum’s experience included leading GES Exposition Services in improving their North American operations and their financial performance. In addition, Baum spent over 15 years with Viad in overseeing Viad’s subsidiary operations, corporate strategy, acquisitions and divestitures.

“Baum has an impressive history of building efficient operations and leading companies through growth,” said Karen Haddon, Joint Managing Director of Le Maitre. “With our focus on growing our business coupled with bringing new manufacturing technology to our company, he will be instrumental in ensuring that our customer experience and quality focus remains a top priority while delivering improved operational and financial performance. He is known for running successful operations and managing groups of talented people in a way that always benefits the customer.”

“Le Maitre has been a leader and an innovator in the special effects industry for over 35 years. It is an extremely well run and profitable company that is looking to grow, and I am very humbled and excited to become part of the Le Maitre team,” said Baum.

Officially launched in March, Mark

Cunningham’s media and marketing agency, Liveculture Group, is up and running with premier clients that include Stageco Staging Group and major local crew supplier Showstars.

Cunningham said: “It’s a real honour to have the opportunity of representing these two highly successful and influential companies.

This is a relationship-driven industry and I couldn’t wish to work with a more friendly and passionate bunch of people.”

Tom Bilsen, Operations Manager at Stageco commented: “We have known Mark since even before the launch of TPi magazine in the late ‘90s and have always been impressed with his work and commitment to our industry. When word reached us that he was starting his own company, we took the opportunity to enlist his expertise and we look forward to putting his talents to good use with Stageco.”

Loud’s Music Gear Group has announced the appointment of Raymond Tee to the position of Mackie APAC Product Specialist and will be based in Malaysia.

“We are delighted to have Raymond join the Loud team at this very exciting time for product innovation across the Mackie portfolio, and the corresponding growth in the APAC region,” remarked Rohan Smith, Loud Director of APAC

Job Title:

Location: Salary: Start Date:

Sales Manager, Sound Department North-West London Negotiable DOE Immediate

Responsibilities & Duties: • To manage and expand the Sales Department.

• To maintain & service new and existing sales clients.

• To seek new sales clients and develop sales communication strategies.

• To oversee second-hand sales of Audio Department Equipment.

• Follow industry trends and developments.

• To support the production and rental department as required.

Skills & Experience Required: • Excellent knowledge in the theory & practise of sound system functionality.

• Knowledge of all d&b Audiotechnik products (training available).

• Knowledge of all different types of sound related products.

• Experience of sound installations & knowledge of Health & Safety requirements to suit.

• Good IT & networking skills.

• Excellent communication skills – both telephone and written.

• CRM expertise with strong colleague and client-facing qualities and negotiation skills • Good planning, organisational and time-management skills.

• Track record of delivering and exceeding targets.

• Above all, a desire to contribute to the growth of the organization as a whole • A full driving licence preferred.

The Role Would Suit: • Someone with sales experience to the Music Industry & all types of live venue.

• Someone who has had touring & event experience.

• Someone prepared to work ‘flexi-hours’ when needed.

Summary: This is a fantastically unique opportunity for a keen, knowledgeable & personable person to take on a thriving part of Entec’s business to further the existing successes.

Contact: Mark Ellis-Cope (Sound Dept Manager)

mark@entec-soundandlight.com

89

www.interfacio.com • +44 208 986 5002

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Below: Quantum Special Effects Corporation has joined forces with ER Laser Productions; Jeremy Lloyd and Ben O’Neill have joined Wonder Works as Director and Design Manager respectively; Meyer Sound has bolstered its marketing efforts by recruiting Karen Ames for the newly created position of Vice President of Marketing and Communications.

Music Gear Sales. “Raymond will add another dimension to our Mackie distributor support capabilities, and is further evidence of our continued investment in region-wide partnership and market development.”

Meyer Sound has bolstered its marketing efforts by recruiting Karen Ames for the newly created position of Vice President of Marketing and Communications.

Ames joins the Meyer Sound senior leadership team to head up its global marketing and

90

communications strategy.

Said Helen Meyer, co-founder and Executive Vice President at Meyer Sound: “Karen has a deep understanding of performing arts and the music business, and brings incredible creative energy, strategic thinking, and solution-oriented perspectives. Her contributions will be crucially important as we build on the company’s growth and expand our global presence.”

Shure’s Finnish distributor, Noretron Audio Oy, has been appointed exclusive distributor for

the DIS line of audio conferencing and interpretation systems in Finland.

“We are very excited about representing Shure in Finland,” added Jyrki Mäkinen, Director of Noretron Audio. “The addition of the DIS brand to our product portfolio allows us to offer an even wider range of innovative, value-added audio solutions to the system integration, pro audio and retail markets.”

Neo-Neon welcomed three new recruits to its UK division. Darren Jackson, (Chauvet, Tryka LED, Coemar UK) has joined the team as European Sales and Marketing Director; Stuart Fenwick (Chauvet, Robe, Martin Professional) has joined the team as Pro UK Sales; and Andrew Riley (Chauvet, Universal Studios USA, Seaworld Florida USA) has been appointed as QC / Customer Services Manager.

Two major players in the UK event service industry have joined forces. With respective offices both sides of the Atlantic, Quantum Special Effects and ER Productions are now offering combined service contracts globally.

Quantum Special Effects Corporation, an industry leader in stage, indoor and close proximity pyrotechnics and special effects, are joining forces with laser show and laser system design specialists ER Laser Productions.

With both companies investing into the very best equipment available, they are set to keep expanding their global reach to offer clients a more comprehensive service.

Riedel has announced that its Marketing Manager, Christian Bockskopf, has been promoted to Head of Marketing. In addition, Serkan Güner has been hired to be the company’s new Marketing and

Communications Manager.

“Christian has done a remarkable job handling various marketing and communications roles over the past years,” said Thomas Riedel, President of Riedel. “This new role is the direct result of his unwavering ability to take on any challenge as he builds on his 10 years of experience at Riedel.”

Güner will report to Bockskopf in his new role as Marketing and Communications Manager, where he will develop press and marketing communication opportunities for Riedel while implementing the company’s sales plans on a global scale.

Robe has strengthened its technical service department in the US with the addition of industry professional Ambrose Gumbs, who has joined the company as Technical Service Department Manager. Gumbs was most recently with Martin Professional for nearly 14 years, where he started out as bench technician and soon specialised in lighting console and PCB repairs.

“This is an awesome opportunity for me to be part of something great that is happening within this Industry.” Gumbs said. “I’m very happy to be here at Robe working with an amazing group of people.”

Wonder Works has announced two new appointments, firstly Jeremy Lloyd to the position of Director. Lloyd brings with him 25 years of working in the live event industry specialising in production and technical design. Ben O’Neill has taken the position of Design Manager, his CAD and design programming experience includes working on film projects such as the last two Harry Potter films and Skyfall.

TPi www.tpimagazine.com/jobs/

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VITAL STATS

VITAL STATS 159 Simeon Friend Profession: CEO, Owner and Founder of The Shop Ibiza Date & place of birth: Greenwich London, 1972 How did you start out in live production?

I was a complete ‘music head’ by the age of 15, and started creating my own events as a way to play music. Some parties held in the Crypt under a church in Deptford was my first real intro into production. Later, I got involved in a lot of snowboarding events which broadened my live sound skills into a broader production management role.

“It was essential that our customers had a rock solid company they could rely on in this traditionally difficult territory...”

What do you consider to be your ‘big break’?

A job I did executing an electronic music programme for Allied Domecq called Kahlua Kollective Beats. It enabled me to travel the world, perfecting my management and production skills. It was pre-email era too, so it was very hands-on and much more dislocated environment than you’d find now.

I’d literally arrive in a strange place, buy magazines to find the suppliers and roll my sleeves up in order to get it done. Everything is much easier thanks to the Internet!

Has anyone played the role of ‘mentor’ in your career?

Nick Adcock; a visionary who went on to become president of DC Shoes and now heads up Fox. His out of the box thinking inspired me to take on challenges in the event industry that most others wouldn’t. Also my brother, Mark Friend of AM-Touring.

How did you end up in Ibiza, from New Cross, London?

After running a two-year global DJ tour; we collected competition winners from all over the world and invited them to Ibiza each summer. After the second summer here, I decided to stay myself.

How did The Shop start and why?

I wanted to create a professional production platform in Ibiza helping brands, artists and private clients with their events and production requirements. The service providers here were virtually non existent when I arrived in 2000, and as the No.1 destination for clubbing nightlife and the hottest platform in the world to launch a product from, it was essential that our customers had a rock solid company they could rely on in this traditionally difficult territory.

As PM and business owner, do you think on-the-job training is key for the next generation of production professionals?

Absolutely. I find that the best technicians are the ones with the best attitude, not necessarily the ones with a list qualifications. A willingness 94

to learn and provide the client with the end results they’re looking for is essential. Employees have a responsibility to train and encourage techs to their own standard, and to teach them the nuances in each local territory that need to be overcome.

What can you tell us about being a founding member of IMS? It’s a very high profile event...

As a group of individuals, my partners and I started the IMS - the International Music Summit - seven years ago. We wanted to create a genuinely professional platform for the dance music industry to gather, debate and learn. The conference is now a must-visit gathering for people who are serious about making it in the professional industry.

From my personal perspective, I not only wanted to make the IMS work, but also wanted to create the best outdoor event in Ibiza, so started by looking for the perfect venue. We found the Dalt Villa World Unesco Site, and after a year of working with the local authorities, managed to secure the license for the truly spectacular site. I am very proud of IMS, which grows year on year and allows us to grow with it as a production company.

It’s the future!

What does The Shop have coming up for the rest of the summer?

The Gumball Rally which hosts 120 cars in the old port of Ibiza; the sound and video installation and live streaming of Tony Hawk’s new skateboard ramp; Calvin Harris’ parties for Cream where we’ll do the full sound and lighting production; several high end private parties for clients such as Heineken - this includes beach parties with floating bars; boat parties with Pioneer Professional Audio and Carl Cox and Corona Festival to name but a few...

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18/03/2014 17:18:53